Man With Kids In Car Leads Police In Chase

A man with two children in the back seat of his car rammed a police van during a drug bust, then was wounded in the head by a police bullet before leading officers on a chase through south Tacoma, officers said.

The children - a 12-year-old boy and a 3-year-old toddler - were unhurt in the Friday evening incident, as was a second man in the vehicle, police said.

Police took the 32-year-old wounded man into custody. The man, whose name was not immediately released, was treated at Madigan Army Medical Center for a bullet graze to his head.

Police Lt. Stan Fisk said undercover officers purchased narcotics from two men in a late-model Ford Bronco on Friday afternoon. Police did not know the two children also were inside the vehicle.

After the buy, officers surrounded the car with a van and other vehicles, but the Bronco’s driver attempted to get away.

“He rammed the raid van, nearly injuring two officers,” Fisk said. “One officer fired a round.”

Despite the wound, the driver went onto Washington 512 and north on Interstate 5 before exiting at South 72nd Street. The older boy and the second man got out of the Bronco, but were apprehended at a nearby convenience store, Fisk said.

The Bronco then sped along residential streets before the driver abandoned it at a dead end, taking the toddler with him, Fisk said. He was taken into custody a short distance away.

The 3-year-old was placed in the care of the state’s Child Protective Services.

Police Chief Roy Fjetland said it appeared that the officer who fired the shot, Mike Hannigan, acted within departmental policy. Hannigan, a five-year veteran, was placed on administrative leave pending a review of the incident.