On the loose: suspect tried to ram police cruiser, then dodged bullets during escape

Story updated with new information

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3300 Windsor Court

3300 Windsor Court

Updated at 6:46 p.m. to include new information and a quote.

A Chattanooga police officer shot at a man during a traffic stop Sunday night when the suspect rammed his vehicle into the officer's patrol car, police said Monday.

The suspect escaped and police are still searching for him.

The shooting happened near 3300 Windsor Court - a dead-end street in a residential area in Brainerd - just after 8 p.m. Sunday. The patrol officer pulled the man over and got out of the car. As he approached the vehicle on foot, the driver put the vehicle in reverse and rammed it into the officer's car.

The officer shot at the vehicle and the man as the driver slammed the vehicle backward. The officer was not hurt, but the suspect drove away and police aren't sure whether the man was injured in the shooting, Deputy Chief David Roddy said. Information on the number of times the officer fired has not been released.

When the suspect fled, the officer tried to chase the vehicle but had to stop on Brainerd Road because his patrol car seemed badly damaged, Roddy added.

"The officer heard what sounded like a lot of noise coming from his vehicle and he believed it had been severely damaged," Roddy said. "The officer pulled to the side of the road and upon exiting his vehicle he found a piece of the suspect's vehicle actually connected to his vehicle."

The officer was not injured during the incident, and it is unknown if the suspect was struck by the officer's gunfire.

Read more in tomorrow's Times Free Press.

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