Brookhaven Officer Dragged by Vehicle

Brookhaven, GA — A man has been arrested for allegedly dragging a Brookhaven police officer with his car during a traffic stop.

Police say Tyrone Chapman, 38, was arrested early Wednesday morning after Officer T. Lefever noticed a vehicle stopped at the Peachtree Road and Dresden Drive intersection. Chapman was hunched over the steering wheel. Lefever was able to wake up Chapman, who allegedly provided a false name and date of birth to the officer.

Police say Chapman then abruptly put the car in drive and accelerated from the scene. Lefever put his arm in to the vehicle in an attempt to stop him.

"As the vehicle accelerated, Officer Lefever became lodged in the window to the point that the officer feared possibly being killed if he let go and fell to the ground at such a high rate of speed," according to a police statement. "At one point, Officer Lefever made eye contact with the driver and said, 'You’re going to kill me,' as he tried to climb in to the open driver’s window."

“I don’t want to kill you,” Chapman said, and stopped the car.

Once stopped, Chapman complied with Lefever's command to step out of the car, but he failed to put the car in park. By this time, other officers had arrived, and Lefever was able to jump into the moving vehicle to stop it before it caused any damage to nearby homes.

“We are very thankful that Officer Lefever was not injured in this incident,” said Brookhaven Police Chief Gary Yandura. “In today’s policing climate, officers are operating at a heightened sense of awareness. This situation could have ended very badly for our officer and the suspect.”

Chapman was also found to have a suspended driver’s license.

Image: DeKalb County Sheriff's Office