Warrant officer’s arm broken during arrest

Published 4:00 pm Wednesday, August 12, 2015

 

It all started on Easy Street in Port Arthur, but the arrest of Mark Hilton was anything but easy.

By the time Hilton was behind bars, a Jefferson County sheriff’s deputy had sustained a broken arm, and Hilton’s charges had escalated to six.

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On Friday, deputies of the Jefferson County Fugitive Warrant Division went to Easy Street to serve a warrant on Hilton for burglary of a habitation, but ran into trouble right away when Hilton attempted to use a small child to hamper his arrest, according to a press statement issued by the sheriff’s department.

Deputies were able to get the child away and place Hilton, who appeared to be under the influence of an unknown substance, under arrest, the press statement indicated.

The incident did not end there.

While transporting Hilton to the Jefferson Count Correctional Facility in the area of Alice and Bobby Streets in Port Arthur, Hilton, from the backseat of the officer’s vehicle, worked his handcuffs to the front of his body, kicked out the rear window and leaped from the vehicle.

Deputy Richie Droddy, the warrant officer, called for assistance and immediately began chasing Hilton.

Droddy attempted to deploy his Taser, which caused Hilton to stop and fall to the ground, before springing to his feet and running again with no effect from the Taser charge.

While the chase continued, Droddy was able to wrestle Hilton to the ground. During the ensuing struggle, Doddy’s arm was broken, but he was able to apprehend Hilton and hold him into back up units arrived.

The Jefferson Count Sheriff’s office would like to commend Deputy Droddy for his dedication and effort in recapturing this fugitive and thank the Port Arthur Police Department for their assistance, Rod Carroll, assistant chief with the Sheriff’s Department, said in the press statement.

Hilton remains in the Jefferson Count Correctional Facility on the following charges:

Resist arrest/search/transport; escape causes bodily injury; aggravated assault on a public servant; criminal mischief – Class A; burglary of a habitation; and failure to appear.

Hilton’s bond for the six charges has been set at a total of $100,000.