The St. Petersburg Police Department found the driver involved in a hit-and-run that left an officer injured.
At about 1 a.m., a St. Pete police officer was conducting a traffic stop with lights activated on I-375, west of the 5th Avenue North entrance ramp.
According to police officials, as the officer was getting out of the police vehicle, a white Kia sedan struck the vehicle. The officer was transported to Bayfront Health with minor injuries. No one else was injured.
The white Kia failed to stop at the scene and continued westbound. Officers said they found the Kia later on and took the driver, Mackenzie Paige Deaton, into custody.
Police charged Deaton with serious bodily injury, hit and run, tampering with evidence, and citations, including failure to follow the Move Over law.
