Forest Acres officer involved in shooting early Thursday

A Forest Acres police officer shot a driver who tried to strike him with his car early Thursday, according to a S.C. State Law Enforcement Division spokesman.

The officer, whose identity was not immediately available, approached a man in a parked vehicle while responding to a report of a loud noise on Brookwood Court between 1 and 2 a.m., SLED’s Thom Berry said. The driver put the vehicle in gear and tried to hit the officer, who fired his weapon.

Despite being struck, the driver was able to drive away. The officer pursued him, with a short chase ending when the driver crashed into an ATM at a credit union on Forest Drive, Berry said. The driver was conscious and talking to emergency workers before being taken to the hospital, he added.

Berry said he does not know the suspect's condition or where he was struck.

No one else, including the officer, was injured, Berry said.

Brookwood Court is not far from Richland Mall, site of another officer-involved shooting that included a Forest Acres officer. Greg Alia, 32, was fatally wounded in a struggle with a suspect inside the mall Sept. 30, 2015.

This story was originally published May 19, 2016 at 8:40 AM with the headline "Forest Acres officer involved in shooting early Thursday."