SKATEBOARD ATTACK CRITICALLY INJURES CALIFORNIA OFFICER

By Robert Salonga

Mercury News
November 25, 2016

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, California -- A police officer is in critical condition after he was hit in the head with a skateboard by a fleeing suspect Thursday afternoon, according to South San Francisco police.

The officer was on patrol in the 300 block of Grand Avenue around 2:20 p.m. when he was waved down by someone saying a man was causing a disturbance at a nearby business, police said. When the officer approached the man in question, the man did not obey the officer's orders, and the officer called for backup.

As a second officer arrived on scene, the man took off on a skateboard, and the first officer ran after him. At some point during the short chase, the man "stopped, turned and struck the officer in the head with the skateboard, knocking the officer unconscious," police said.

Soon after, the suspect was caught and arrested by the second officer. The suspect has since been identified as Luis Alberto Ramos-Coreas, a 28-year-old South San Francisco resident.

The injured officer, whose name was withheld by police, reportedly suffered a major head injury and underwent surgery at a local trauma center.

South San Francisco Mayor Mark Addiego released a statement of support after hearing about the incident.

"This is so disheartening to hear of this incident, in a city such as South San Francisco," he said. "We are a tight-knit community with a police force that is our family. Our thoughts and prayers are with this officer and his family."

The attack occurred during a year when fatal attacks on officers across the United States are spiking, with 57 such killings recorded in 2016, a 70 percent increase over the previous year. The trend prompted the San Jose Police Officers' Association to call out a lack of protests over the killings in contrast to demonstrations evoked by officer-involved shootings.

Additional details about the Thursday attack were not released.