Near Miss: Car Almost Hits Cop During Traffic Stop

BRIDGEPORT (CBSDFW) - A North Texas police officer who was nearly run over during a traffic stop might have saved multiple lives with his actions.

It happened shortly after Corporal Richard Taylor with the Bridgeport Police Department pulled over a teen driver for running a red light. As Taylor asked the driver about his actions, he noticed a pair of headlights heading his way. He first thought it might be someone the driver knew personally.

"Him being a young driver, this is a small town, a lot of times they'll call their parents," said Taylor.

Taylor can be heard asking, "Who is this?" in dash-cam video the department released. But as the car moved closer, Taylor stalled for a moment and then ran out of the way.

The car is seen zooming by, narrowly missing Taylor and the driver he pulled over that night.

"Once I saw the accelerating, I thought he was, the driver, the wrong-way driver, was intentionally trying to hit me," said Taylor.

Police said it was not just a little swerve. Investigators said the driver crossed over multiple lanes of traffic, coming within feet of the officer.

"My goal was to get this guy stopped before somebody got hurt, before he hurt himself or hurt anybody else," said Taylor.

Without skipping a beat, Taylor cleared his initial call and took off after the wrong-way driver.

"Once I realized I was OK and the person I stopped was OK, my next concern was everybody else on the road," said Taylor.

The officer eventually caught up with the driver who investigators said had nearly just killed him.

Police said Timothy Atkinson admitted he had been drinking, but officers said he was below the legal limit. He was arrested for driving with a suspended license stemming a prior DUI and for driving on the wrong side of the road.

"It could be something as little as pulling somebody over for a red light, and in an instant it can turn into a deadly situation," said Taylor.

The original driver Taylor pulled over got off with a warning.

"He got out of a ticket, but he's even more lucky, he didn't get hurt as well," said Taylor.

With driver and officer off the road at the scariest moment, Taylor said the stop likely saved both of their lives.

"Just doing my job really," said Taylor. "Just trying to keep the roadways safe."