Madison police officer injured in Tuesday incident

A Jackson man has been arrested after a chase ending on I-55 near Ridgeland that sent one Madison Police Officer to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Jerrell T. Staten, 21, of Jackson was arrested after the pursuit. MPD Captain Kevin Newman said that Staten has been transported to Merit Health in Canton as a precaution to be checked after the accident that resulted in his arrest.

Upon his release he will be charged with aggravated assault of a law enforcement officer and felony fleeing, Newman said. According to Newman other charges are pending as a felony shoplifting investigation in which Staten is a suspect continues.

Newman said an officer was injured while trying to apprehend Staten and has been sent to University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson with non-life-threatening injuries.

Newman said that at 2:54 p.m. Tuesday, April 20, an officer of the Madison Police Department conducted a traffic stop on a 2009 Mazda Tribute van on Mississippi 463, eastbound between Highland Colony Parkway and Interstate 55. 

The vehicle in question was suspected in involvement in a previous felony shoplifting incident reported at the Best Buy store in Madison. 

Newman said that as the officer was interacting with the driver of the vehicle at the driver’s side window and door of the stopped vehicle, the driver drove off eastbound onto Mississippi 463 dragging the officer with the vehicle. As the vehicle turned south onto the Interstate 55 onramp, the officer was able to free himself from the outside of the fleeing vehicle.

“Other officers arriving on the scene gave aid to the officer while other officers pursued the fleeing vehicle south onto Interstate 55,” Newman said.

As the vehicle reached the 105 mile-marker in Ridgeland it struck the left cement guard rail of the interstate causing two of the pursuing vehicles to interact with the fleeing vehicle, Newman said. The fleeing vehicle came to a stop in the far-left lane of the southbound interstate at which time the driver was taken into custody.

“There were no other occupants of the fleeing vehicle and other than the two police vehicles, no other vehicles were involved in the traffic crash,” Newman said.

Officers of the Ridgeland Police Department as well as officers of the Madison County Sheriff’s Office assisted with the accident scene.

The officer that was originally dragged by the fleeing vehicle was then transported to the UMMC.