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(MLive.com | File)

Trooper Garry Guild was assisted by two citizens while fighting multiple suspects who were charged with assaulting an officer and other felony charges. (Courtesy | Lt. Melinda Logan)

BERRIEN COUNTY, MI -- A lone Michigan State Police trooper may have lost a fight with two suspects before he received the help of brave citizens.

At about 8:43 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 20, Trooper Garry Guild attempted to stop a speeding motorcycle traveling south on a U.S. 31 bypass near Matthew Road in Berrien Township. The 21-year-old unlicensed driver from Indiana began to stop, but quickly accelerated his motorcycle and re-entered the freeway, police said.

After a three-mile pursuit, the driver attempted to maneuver in the gore of an exit ramp and lost control. After crashing, he quickly returned to his feet and charged toward Guild, a 21-year veteran of the Michigan State Police.

As Guild was wrestling with the man, a vehicle stopped nearby and let out the motorcycle driver's 19-year-old brother, who entered the fray, according to a news release from the Michigan State Police.

The brother began attempting to choke Guild while the motorcycle driver landed several punches to the trooper's face. Both men were around 5-feet-6-inches tall and of a "small build," said Lt. Melinda Logan.

Logan said Guild was beginning to black out from the choke hold when two more citizens in separate vehicles immediately stopped and ran to the rescue. As a 50-year-old Plainwell man and Berrien Springs resident Jerry Burnham joined the melee, it became clear the two brothers were not going to come in easily.

"If not for passersby, I don't know what would have happened," Logan said. "Watching the (Guild's dash camera) video, cars kept driving by. It took pretty special people to put themselves at risk."

While Guild handcuffed the motorcyclist, the two citizens subdued his brother. After being restrained and while wearing a seatbelt in Guild's vehicle, the motorcyclist was able to unlock the patrol car's door and escape.

Logan said state police vehicles don't have cages that separate the front and back seats. Its back doors do not lock automatically either. Normally a second trooper monitors suspects in custody so they don't escape, but Logan said the ferocity of the two brothers made the task more difficult.

"They fought the entire time, even when they were in handcuffs," Logan said. "It was a constant go until they got patrol cars (to back them up)."

Both men were finally placed in custody with the assistance of the citizens, Buchanan PD, Berrien County Sheriff Department, and Pokagon Tribal Police. The motorcyclist had to be placed in leg restraints.

Logan said it was not immediately apparent that the two men were on any drugs or alcohol. They received treatment, as is protocol when a use of force situation occurs, but sustained no injuries.

Guild was treated and released from a local hospital for minor injuries. He is scheduled to work a shift Tuesday.

Both suspects will be lodged at the Berrien County Jail. Their names will be released once they are arraigned, police said.

Meanwhile, police are conducting a further investigation into the suspect's connection to the motorcycle, which was reported stolen out of Van Buren County, along with several breaking and entering complaints.