An Alabama police officer is recovering after being attacked with a bayonet while responding to a reported domestic abuse early Tuesday morning.
A Mountain Brook police officer was on patrol around 1:30 a.m. when he spotted an 85-year-old woman walking down Brookwood Road wearing night clothes and one shoe, according to WIAT-TV.
"He stopped to be sure she was OK, and determined that it might be some sort of domestic incident at her residence, so he and other officers went to that location to further investigate," Police Chief Ted Cook told the news station.
When the officers arrived to the residence, they began searching for the possible offender. That's when officials say a female jumped out from under a blanket holding an 18-inch long blade, swinging it at an officer's head and neck area. She struck the officer in the arm with the weapon and the other officers were able to disarm her forcibly take the woman into custody.
The officer received stitches following the attack and is doing OK. Officials said it is unlikely that he will have to miss time from work.
Police said they are investigating the suspect’s mental health and currently do not know the extent of her psychiatric condition. The woman's name is not being release until formal charges are brought by the Jefferson County district attorney’s office, which could include attempted murder.
Cook said that he believes the incident was isolated in light of recent attacks on officers across the country.
"We think this is a separate, more isolated event, but it does demonstrate involved with officers on any given call that they may face," he said. "This was really checking on welfare and something that was domestic really turned into something that could have been life threatening."
