UAlbany campus on edge after officer fires weapon
A 12-year veteran of UAlbany Police is now out of the hospital after being hit by a car on campus, early Tuesday morning.
The officer fired his weapon at the fleeing car after he was hit. Itβs believed to be the first time in the history of the department that an officer has fired their weapon in the line of duty, the department said.
This all began around 1 a.m. Police tried to stop a car on Center Drive East on the uptown campus of UAlbany, they said. According to police, the vehicle had been kicked off campus earlier in the evening.
The car did not stop, and a pursuit began. It ended around Albany Medical Center, where four men were followed on foot and later arrested.
Thankfully, no one else on campus was hurt.
The driver of the vehicle, Anthony Taylor, 19, of Albany, has been charged with attempted aggravated assault on a police officer, second-degree assault and reckless endangerment β all felonies. He is also facing misdemeanors of unlawful fleeing a police officer in a motor vehicle, resisting arrest, obstructing governmental administration, reckless driving and traffic violations.
Two others were charged with misdemeanor offenses. The fourth person has not been charged.
All four β who are not students β were banned from campus earlier in the evening related to alleged involvement in threatening and harassing conduct, police said.