Crime & Safety
Hull Driver Totals Police Cruiser, Sends Hingham Cop to Hospital
A reckless driver rammed his vehicle into a motor vehicle stop on Thursday night, sending the officer and himself to the hospital.
Police have cited a Hull man after he crashed his vehicle into a police cruiser that was conducting a traffic stop.
Just after 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Hingham Officer Daniel Leary was making a traffic stop on Route 3A at Fottler Road. When Leary returned to his cruiser, which had its emergency lights flashing, a Chrysler Sebring crashed into the rear of the police vehicle, pushing it into the stopped car.
Hingham Police Sgt. Steven Dearth said the impact sent Officer Leary and the driver of the Chrystler, David Collins, age 72, of Hull to nearby hospitals with non life threatening injuries. Both were treated and released, Dearth said. The driver of the vehicle, which was pulled over during the traffic stop, was not injured.
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"This could have been a fatal or serious injury if the officer had been beside, stepping in or climbing out of the cruiser as he was struck," Dearth said. "He was lucky.
Collins told officers that when he approached the traffic stop, he went to hit the brake but instead hit the gas pedal instead. Hingham Police cited him for Operating Negligently to Endanger and Making an Unsafe Lane Change and will appear at a future date at Hingham District Court on the charges.
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Sgt. Dearth confirmed that neither alcohol nor drugs were factors in the crash.
Police filed an immediate threat request to have Collins’ license suspended with the Registry of Motor Vehicles.
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