Driver charged with OVI after police officer hit at accident scene

A man charged with drunk driving and suspected of striking a Miami Twp. police officer with his vehicle this weekend sought to veer around a cruiser stopped on an Interstate 75 exit ramp and assisting with an accident, authorities said Monday.

Instead, the Miamisburg driver’s pickup truck clipped Officer Tyler Simpson, adding to the chaos from crashes reported southbound near the Ohio 725 interchange Saturday night that led to a highway traffic jam lasting nearly five hours, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol.

“The officer’s vehicle was stationary and non-occupied on the exit lane in an attempt to divert traffic to the left,” said patrol Sgt. Chris Colbert.

Then the suspect — Adam Blackmore, 33 — “drove around the right side of the vehicle, which would have put him partially in the grass….just wanting to get around” the cruiser, Colbert added.

The patrol’s Dayton post was seeking Monday to nail down the details of the three accidents that involved six vehicles near mile marker 45 just north of I-75/Ohio 725 interchange, Colbert said. All involved in the wrecks that occurred between 9 and 10 p.m. – including Simpson — were treated at hospitals for minor injuries and released, he said.

Simpson was struck at 9:30 p.m., and the driver of the truck fled, according to Miami Twp. The highway patrol arrested Blackmore about eight minutes later, and he is out of jail on bond, the township said in a statement Monday.

Simpson, 28, suffered minor injuries after he was “hit by the mirror of the vehicle in the shoulder,” Colbert said. He was thrown 10 to 12 feet into a grassy area and taken to Kettering Medical Center, authorities said Sunday.

The officer, hired by the township in September 2012, “is now resting at home for what is expected to be a lengthy recovery,” according to the township.

Blackmore was charged Monday with OVI, failing to proceed with due regard/safety and failing to drive in marked lanes, according to Miamisburg Municipal Court records. He pleaded not guilty to all three charges, and his next court date is May 21, records show.

The first accident involved a semi and an Impala. The car’s driver lost control, went off the roadway and struck a light pole, which knocked it into the roadway, according to the highway patrol.

In the other crash, a Sport Utility Vehicle braked to avoid hitting the light pole, causing a Mercedes to strike the back of the SUV, highway patrol officials said.

Impala driver Evan Adam Walker, 28, of Trotwood, was cited for multiple offenses, Colbert said. They include driving under the influence, improper lane change, driving with a suspended license, and failing to restrain a child passenger, Colbert said.

The crash involving the SUV resulted in an assured clear distance citation against Mercedes driver Kemronbey Khabiboy, 25, of Dayton, Colbert said.

All lanes reopened on southbound I-75 at Ohio 725 just after 2 a.m., officials said.

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