COWETA, Okla. — The Coweta Police Department is changing its training policies after a fiery crash on Aug. 3.
Officer Samuel Chapman was attempting to join a pursuit at the 111th and State Highway 51 intersection when the crash happened.
The officer went through the intersection with lights and sirens at around 51 MPH and crashed into Judith Elliott, the wife of Wagoner County Sheriff Chris Elliot.
"Once [Elliott] entered the intersection, she saw the police vehicle, and she tried to accelerate to get out of his way quickly," CPD said in a press release. "Officer Chapman saw Mrs. Elliott’s vehicle turning left directly in front of him and applied his brakes to slow down while turning his vehicle to the right to avoid the collision."
CPD said after reviewing video nearby, both the officer and Elliott's view of each other was blocked.
Police Chief Mike Bell then addressed training saying Officer Chapman was a new hire from another department and while his shooting proficiency was checked they did not test his driving proficiency.
Bell said he implemented a training program for all new hires from outside departments to go to a driving course and "demonstrate their ability to operate a police vehicle in emergency responses."
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