Fleeing Suspect Seriously Injures Local Officer

Flatonia Police Sgt. Trey Tunis nearly lost his life after a suspect in a police chase slammed into Tunis’ patrol truck. The incident happened around 2 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 11. According to Flatonia Police Chief Lee Dick, a trooper from the Texas Department of Public Safety had attempted to stop a vehicle on Interstate 10. A chase ensued and the pursuit entered Flatonia heading west. Dick said Tunis attempted to deploy a spike strip at the westbound on-ramp at SH 95.

“He heard the pursuit exit into Flatonia and went to assist the trooper,” Dick said. “But just after he picked up the spikes and started driving, the suspect Tboned his patrol car at SH 95 and the westbound frontage road.”

Tunis was knocked unconscious and suffered serious injuries. He was flown by hospital to Dell Seton Medical Center in Austin where he underwent emergency treatment. Tunis was released from the hospital Sunday evening.

“When I spoke with the trooper, he said he thought it was a fatality as he ran up to the truck,” Dick said. “Had the impact been on the driver’s side, or had someone been on the passenger side, it almost certainly would have been.”

Dick said suspect suffered serious injuries as well, and was also flown to Austin for treatment at a different hospital.

The suspect will likely face multiple criminal charges. Dick declined to speculate whether or not the suspect targeted Tunis. Dick said he went to the hospital immediately after the crash. When the Record spoke to him on Sunday, Dick said he had not yet had a chance to review the video footage from Tunis’s patrol unit. He said DPS would be filing the criminal charges.