A 39-year-old man is in critical condition after his family says he was run over by a police officer Sunday night.
Demario Person was hurt on Washington Road near Dobbs Way in East Point, Channel 2 Action News reported.
His girlfriend, Angelica White, told the news station she and Person were chased into a utility pole by another car. East Point police, however, said the couple left the scene of an accident in which they were involved.
An officer stopped their car and asked Person to get out. That's when another officer accidentally hit Person with their patrol car, police told Channel 2.
Person was lying in the roadway and was not seen by the driver, according to the Georgia State Patrol incident report.
"He was screaming,” White said. “He couldn't breathe.”
One of the passengers was Person’s 10-year-old daughter, who watched the incident unfold.
Police did not say whether the officer who hit Person is on leave, but confirmed an internal investigation is underway.
Person's mother, Bridgette McDonald, said her son’s injuries are devastating.
"I wouldn't wish this upon no parent," she said.
McDonald said Person has a fractured pelvis, other broken bones and internal bleeding. He will also need facial reconstruction surgery.
“It's hard for me right now,” she told Channel 2. “I'm trying to be strong. It's hard to go in the hospital and see my son laying there and I still can't talk to him."
McDonald said no one from the East Point Police Department has told her exactly what happened.
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