Man Hits Officer During Questioning

A Spokane man was arrested early Saturday after police said he hit an officer who had stopped him for questioning.

Norman P. Anderton, 44, of 609 S. Howe, faces charges of third-degree assault, resisting arrest and riding a bicycle without lights after dark. He was booked into Spokane County Jail.

Anderton was riding a bicycle on Sprague at Fiske without lights about 1 a.m., said police spokesman Dick Cottam. Police stopped him to ask him some questions and noticed a strong smell of alcohol.

When the officer tried to question Anderton, he resisted and hit the officer in the face, Cottam said.

The officer suffered cuts, scrapes and bruises but was not taken to the hospital.