Police: K-9 mistakenly bites bystander during arrest in American Canyon
AMERICAN CANYON – Police in American Canyon are conducting a review after a police K-9 mistakenly bit a bystander while a driver was being arrested following a crash over the weekend.
Around 2 p.m. Saturday, police were called to the area of Highway 29 and Mini Drive following a crash. Police were arresting the driver of the crashed vehicle on suspicion of resisting arrest and evading.
A K-9 was brought in after what police described as the driver's "noncompliance and the high-risk felony crime that had been committed." Police said the dog bypassed the suspect's car and bit a bystander running from the scene.
The bystander, identified as a 19-year-old man from Solano County, had been in the center median asking for money, police said. The man suffered bites on both hands and suffered minor injuries.
After initially declining medical attention, police said the man was transported to Kaiser Permanente hospital in neighboring Vallejo, where he was treated and released the same day.
The suspect, identified as 48-year-old James Spencer, was arrested without further incident and booked into the Napa County Department of Corrections.
According to jail records, Spencer is being held on $50,000 bail. It was not immediately known when he would appear in court on the charges.