A 21-year-old man was fatally shot by police while trying to evade officers attempting to stop the man’s vehicle Friday evening near Hamilton Place mall, according to a news release from the Chattanooga Police Department.
Around 5:30 p.m., officers in the area of the 2100 block of Hamilton Place Boulevard saw a man acting in a suspicious manner and developed probable cause to initiate a stop, the release said. As officers approached that person, he and two other individuals fled the scene in a vehicle traveling at a high rate of speed.
Because of the dangerous manner in which the vehicle was being driven, officers took action to stop the vehicle and prevent further risk to the public, the news release said.
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While attempting to flee, the vehicle became stuck in traffic, and the driver rammed multiple occupied vehicles while trying to evade the officers. One officer was struck while attempting to stop the fleeing vehicle. In an effort to limit any further threat to public safety, officers fired at the driver, striking him.