Texas Man Charged With Assault for Injuring Northport Officer

A wanted Texas man is facing new felony assault charges after he allegedly injured a Northport Police Officer while fleeing from a traffic stop Wednesday afternoon.

Marty Sellers, the co-commander of the Tuscaloosa Violent Crimes Unit, said the suspect, 32-year-old Jeremi Johnson, is a resident of Cedar Hill, Texas who was pulled over in Northport by a Tuscaloosa County Sheriff's deputy around 3:45 p.m. Wednesday.

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The TCSO deputy knew the driver was possibly wanted, and a Northport Police officer stopped to assist the deputy in the stop.

Sellers said the law enforcement officers found Johnson to be wanted on felony charges in Texas and attempted to remove him from his vehicle to take him into custody.

Before the officers could remove him, Johnson allegedly turned the vehicle towards them and accelerated away, throwing both the NPD officer and the TCSO deputy to the ground.

The Northport Police officer was injured in the incident, but not critically, and was treated at an area hospital.

Other police spotted Johnson several miles from the original scene and were able to get him stopped and into custody without further incident.

Because a Northport Police officer was injured in the encounter, investigators from the multi-agency Tuscaloosa Violent Crimes Unit worked the case and ultimately charged Johnson with second-degree assault, a felony, for injuring the officer.

He will also be held until he can be sent back to Texas to face felony charges there as well.