Officials: Drunk Driver Hits Portsmouth, NH Police Vehicle

A Portsmouth police vehicle was struck by an alleged drunk driver at a crash scene on Wednesday night.

An officer was directing traffic around a closure on Lafayette Road in front of Walmart around 10:30 p.m. when a car approached that did not appear to be slowing down, according to police. Despite the officer waving and using a flashlight to warn the driver, the car hit the police vehicle on the driver's side.

The officer ran from the cruiser to avoid being hit, according to police.

The impact of the hit pushed the vehicle 90 degrees causing significant damage to both vehicles and their airbags to deploy.

The driver of the vehicle, Scott Richardson, 43, of Gloucester, Massachusetts, was charged with driving while intoxicated and negligent driving. A passenger in Richardson's car was transported to Portsmouth Regional Hospital for treatment of minor injuries.

Richardson was released on personal recognizance and will be arraigned in Portsmouth Circuit Court on August 9.

Anthony St.Hilaire contributed to this report.

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com or via Twitter @DanAlexanderNH