An off-duty Westchester County police officer was charged today with driving while intoxicated after going through a red light and hitting into a Scarsdale police cruiser, sending the on-duty Scarsdale officer inside to the hospital.
The county officer, Joseph A. Kraus, was suspended with pay pending a county police investigation after the 1:24 a.m. crash at the intersection of East Parkway and Popham Road.
"I was upset and angered and surprised," Deputy County Executive Susan Tolchin said about hearing the news this morning. "This does not reflect at all on the Westchester County Police Department. This reflects on what one police officer did and shouldn't have done."
Kieran O'Leary, a county police spokesman, said Kraus' immediate suspension and a pending internal investigation were standard procedures for any officer arrested and accused of a crime.
"Our best wishes for a speedy recovery go out to the Scarsdale police officer who was injured in this incident," O'Leary added.
A press release by Scarsdale Det. Lt. Bryant Clark detailing the incident was read to The Journal News by phone this morning.
A Scarsdale officer who read the release to the paper said the detective was unavailable to answer further questions and there was no additional information being released at this time, including the injured Scarsdale officer's name or the extent of her injuries.
According to the release, Kraus passed through a steady red light while driving a Chevy pickup truck, then hit into the Scarsdale officer's cruiser.
The officer had to be extricated from her vehicle by the Scarsdale Fire Department and she was transported to Westchester Medical Center by the Scarsdale Volunteer Ambulance Corps.
Kraus was charged with a single count of driving while intoxicated and released on his own recognizance after being processed at Scarsdale police headquarters.
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