MESA, Ariz. — A suspect suffered serious but non-life threatening injuries after being hit by a Mesa police officer Thursday night.
Police said Mesa bike officers were contacted by light rail security around 6:30 p.m. The security officers reported a man on the light rail was acting suspiciously and trying to sell a watch, according to the court document filed by Mesa police.
Police later identified this man as Andrew Spencer. Officers tried to contact the Spencer, who left the train with his girlfriend, but he refused to stop and ran diagonally across the intersection, leaving a rolling suitcase behind.
Police said they were talking Spencer's girlfriend when Spencer disappeared behind a business and later reappeared without his shirt across the street from officers.
Police said Spencer was very animated, reaching his hand behind the small of his back several times and pointing his hand toward the officers. This continued for several minutes, and Spencer walked into the traffic lanes of eastbound Main Street, according to police.
Two additional officers drove by on an unrelated call for service, and officers on foot asked the officers in the patrol cars to drive onto westbound Main Street from Mesa Drive in case Spencer continued north.
Police said Spencer continued acting erratically, yelling and walking onto the train tracks past the posted "no trespassing" sign.
After the patrol vehicles turned onto Main Street, one of the officers saw Spencer in the roadway down on one knee with his arms and hands pointed straight in front of him. The officer said Spencer was pointing a black object at him.
The officer said based on Spencer's stance, he believed Spencer had a handgun pointed at him, according to the court document. Feeling he did not have time to remove his holstered gun and exit the patrol vehicle, he accelerated toward Spencer and hit him, knocking Spencer to the ground.
The officer in the first vehicle was wearing a body camera that captured some of the incident. The video shows Spencer stepping directly in front of the patrol car and stopping.
Multiple witnesses—the other police officers and several civilians—said they thought the suspect was pointing a handgun at the officer as well.
Police said a black cell phone was found on the ground near where Spencer was hit by a vehicle. There was also a glass smoking pipe commonly used to smoke marijuana in Spencer's pocket, police said.
No officers were injured, and Spencer was treated for his injuries at a local hospital.
After Spencer was released from the hospital, he told police he drank alcohol just before the incident and blacked out. He also said he usually becomes violent when he is drunk.
Spencer also told police he felt bad for his girlfriend and officers involved in the incident, according to the court document.
A records check showed he was previously arrested in April about two miles west of the most recent incident, according to police.
The court document said Spencer was also causing a disturbance and trespassing on the light rail tracks in the April incident. Police said he was seen in the roadway jumping in front of marked police vehicles, taking a shooting stance and making hand motions as if he were pointing a gun at officers.
Spencer faces several charges, including aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, simulating a deadly weapon, threats and intimidation, criminal trespass, obstruction of a public thoroughfare and possession of drug paraphernalia.