Apr 25, 2013 2 min read

A Washington motorist was flown to a Pittsburgh hospital for treatment of injuries suffered in a crash that occurred just after he allegedly sideswiped a North Franklin Township police cruiser.

Peter Andrew Reid, 25, was talking and alert when he was transported to Washington Hospital and then transferred to UPMC-Presbyterian hospital. A spokeswoman at the Pittsburgh hospital had no record of his treatment.

Township police Officer Rodney Bush said he was traveling south on Franklin Farms Road just before midnight Wednesday on his way to a call about a suspicious person near Park Avenue and West Maiden Street. As Bush passed Sylvan Drive in his marked cruiser, he saw an approaching car in his lane of travel.

“I took evasive action and got as far right as I could,” Bush said. “The mirrors on his vehicle hit the driver’s side and passenger door of the cruiser, leaving two black marks.”

Bush said he stopped his vehicle, thinking that the other driver also would stop.

“I looked in my rearview mirror, and he kept on going,” the officer said. “By the time I turned around, he was already crashed at the bottom of the hill. I figured he must have hit something, because as I approached, the streetlights were flickering.”

Police said Reid hit a mailbox at 240 Franklin Farms, a gas meter at 280 Franklin Farms and a mailbox and utility pole at 288 Franklin Farms. His vehicle came to rest on its roof.

North Franklin firefighters had to extricate Reid from his vehicle.

Police said blood was drawn to determine his alcohol level. In addition to driving under the influence of alcohol, police said, Reid faces charges of leaving the scene of a crash, reckless driving, fleeing or eluding police, failure to stay in his lane and not wearing a seat belt.