PITTSFIELD — A police officer was hurt in a confrontation with a motorist that included a high-speed chase and the use of pepper spray to subdue the driver, authorities said Tuesday.
Officer Chelsea Merry is recovering from injuries she suffered in the incident Friday, according to a news release from Pittsfield acting police Chief Marty Cochran. The driver of the vehicle, Michael Kilgore, 46, of Newport, was arrested and charged with elevated aggravated assault, eluding an officer and refusing to submit to arrest or detention.
Merry stopped Kilgore on Friday evening on the Phillips Corner Road and issued a traffic ticket for speeding and an expired inspection. But Kilgore refused to sign the ticket and drove away, running over Merry’s foot in the process.
Merry followed Kilgore until he stopped at the intersection of Phillips Corner Road and Canaan Road. Kilgore refused to get out of the vehicle and Merry reached through the window to attempt to remove him, the release said. But Kilgore rolled up his window, trapping Merry’s arm and began to drive again. Merry was able to free her arm and again followed Kilgore as he drove west on Canaan Road, reaching speeds over 100 mph.
Merry lost sight of Kilgore but then soon spotted him again, now on Sibley Pond Road, the release said. She blocked Kilgore’s vehicle and he exited it. The two briefly struggled before Merry used pepper spray to arrest Kilgore and place him in her cruiser. Kilgore was then transported to the Somerset County Jail.
The release didn’t explain why Kilgore fled following the initial traffic stop.
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