CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — A Chicago police officer was hit by a car downtown during a huge Mexican Independence Day celebration overnight.
Hundreds of vehicles, many of them with large Mexican flags flying from them, jammed downtown Wednesday night and into early Thursday morning. These caravans have been regular features downtown the last few years on the night of Sept. 15 and 16, the latter date celebrated as Mexican Independence Day and marks the day the country became free from Spanish rule.
But shortly before 2:30 a.m. as a Chicago police officer was directing traffic on Ida B. Wells Drive near State Street, one car would not stop and hit the officer. Police said the officer was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital and did not have life threatening injuries.
The driver and passenger were taken into custody. Police believed the crash was alcohol-related and two handguns were said to have been found in the car.
