An innocuous weekday morning turned hectic when a pair of Auraria Campus Police officers were struck by a car in the Spruce parking lot at Walnut and 8th streets in front of the Tivoli Student Union.

An officer made a routine traffic stop around noon, the party being stopped had a warrant out for their arrest, according to Blaine Nickeson, chief of safety and communications for Auraria Campus.

“We had multiple officers respond at that point to take the suspect into custody,” Nickeson said. “The suspect refused commands, put their vehicle in reverse, and actually backed over a police motorcycle.”

Given the time of day, students were flocking in-and-out of class, leading to multiple witnesses. One of those witnesses was MSU Denver freshman Ean Rettich.

“I was on the way to class and I saw this cop on the ground, his bike crashed, and there were two other cops surrounding him,” Rettich said. “He seemed like he was in a lot of pain at the moment. He got up and everything, but he was on the ground for a while.”

Nickeson issued an Auraria Campus timely warning via emails and text briefly describing the situation and saying that there is a “large police presence. Avoid area!”

The suspect then fled the scene southbound on Walnut Street but has since been taken into custody.

The officers suffered minor injuries with one taken to the hospital for a possible leg injury.