Metropolis officer hit with a vehicle and bitten while responding to a crash on I-24

A Metropolis Police officer was hit with a vehicle and bitten by the driver as he was trying to get to a crash along I-24 on Thursday.

The officer was responding to the interstate crash with his lights and siren on as he tried to get onto I-24 eastbound from Metropolis. He was forced to stop as there was a truck blocking the ramp. The truck was sideways in the roadway as the driver tried to turn around so he could head the wrong way up the ramp in an attempt to get out of the traffic. 

The officer stood at the front of the truck, driven by 77-year-old Houston R. Henley of Metropolis, trying to get the man to let him through. Instead, Henley allegedly accelerated and hit the officer. Then he refused to get out of the truck. The officer then tried to remove him from the vehicle but was reportedly bitten on the arm by Henley. 

Henley was taken into custody and is facing charges of aggravated battery and resisting arrest. He had to be checked out at Massac Memorial Hospital before being released on a notice to appear in court.