MORGANTOWN — A suicidal woman rammed her car into a police cruiser before attempting to jump from a bridge.The collision occurred about 2:04 a.m., Friday, when the woman rammed her sedan into a patrol car head-on while it was patrolling the Walnut Street Bridge, a department press release stated.The woman was driving a 2008 Chrysler Seabring, Andrew Stacy, Morgantown’s public information officer, said.
The Morgantown Police Department does not release personal information on suicide attempts, the release stated. The woman is a Monongalia County resident and known to local authorities.
After ramming the cruiser, the woman left her car and attempted to jump from the bridge, but officers intervened, according to the release. Walnut Street Bridge was closed to traffic for several hours during the incident because of safety and access concerns.
Officers tried to talk the woman down from the railing, but she attempted to jump and after a brief struggle was detained, the press release said. The 27-year-old was taken to J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital for psychological evaluation.
Stacy said this is the same person who attempted suicide by jumping off the Westover Bridge after jumping from a moving car the day after Christmas, 2017. She was involuntarily committed after a water rescue involving the Morgantown Fire Department, Granville Fire Department, MPD, and Mon Health EMS.
She has since been released, he said.
The officers involved in the struggle to arrest her and collision had minor injuries and were treated at Ruby then released, according to the release.The patrol car is out of service and the extent of the damage has not yet been determined, Stacy said. He said the car is at the city’s garage and may be totaled even if the damage only amounts to a few thousand dollars, because it’s an older car.
Criminal charges will be determined after the woman is diagnosed, Stacy said. Officers obtained a search warrant for a blood test to see if she was under the influence. If so, she could be charged with DUI, battery with a deadly weapon, and/or reckless driving, he said.
