Milwaukee motorcycle officer hurt; driver U-turn leads to collision

MILWAUKEE - Milwaukee police say a vehicle made a U-turn in front of a motorcycle officer on Wednesday afternoon, Oct. 30 – and caused a collision near 6th and Layton.

The wreck happened around 2:45 p.m. – and officials say the driver of the vehicle attempted to flee. However, his vehicle became disabled. The driver was arrested and taken to a hospital for medical clearance.

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Timothy Hagen said he was just getting ready to head home after another shift at Crash Champions Collision Repair when he looked up at just the right time.

 "I always look up just to look at traffic on 6th Street cause it's like a drag strip," he said. "Just kaboom. And I saw the bike and the officer just [...] get hit, and that freaked me out. I'm like, whoa, I've never seen a motorcycle hit like that."

Hagen said he ran back into the office to have someone dial 911, then came back to check on the police officer, whose leg was now pinned beneath his bike.

"He was already on the walkie talkie trying to get [...] everybody involved to pick him up and get him," Hagen said.

The motorcycle officer, a 50-year-old man, was taken to a hospital for treatment of serious but non-fatal injuries. Neighbors like Jayme Glazewski were happy to hear that the officer would be okay Wednesday night.

"It just breaks your heart, because they're dealing with so much else on a daily basis, trying to keep us safe and keep themselves safe," Glazewski said.

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Criminal charges against the driver will be referred to the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office.