Officer Hit by Sedan; Driver Held

SUN VALLEY —  A suspected hit-and-run driver who authorities said tried to run down a Los Angeles police officer was arrested Sunday on suspicion of attempted murder.

Officer Jeff Smith, 30, was critically injured after being hit by a large, four-door sedan about 4:50 a.m. at the intersection of San Fernando Road and Tuxford Street, said Los Angeles Police Officer Charlotte Broughton.

Smith and his partner, Officer Rosa Reinaga, were investigating an unrelated hit-and-run traffic accident at the Sun Valley intersection when the speeding car hit the officer and two witnesses to the first accident, Broughton said.

“Statements indicate that the suspect intentionally struck the police officer and the witnesses,” she said.

Smith--a three-year veteran assigned to the LAPD Foothill Division--is expected to recover from multiple fractures, Broughton said. Late Sunday, his condition had stabilized, an LAPD spokesman said.

One of the witnesses was also hospitalized, with a broken leg, and the other was treated for a broken arm and released.

Edgar Avitia, 18, was arrested several miles from the scene, after a private security officer followed his car to Branford Avenue and the Golden State Freeway and alerted police.

Police said they had determined no motive and that there was no initial indication that Avitia was driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. LAPD Robbery-Homicide is investigating the accident.

Avitia is being held at the Twin Towers jail in downtown Los Angeles in lieu of $500,000 bail, police said. His arraignment is expected Tuesday.