Crime & Safety

Macomb Township Man Charged With Injuring Police Officer in Chase That Drew Gunfire

Stephen Mispelon, 26, was shot in the arm by the deputy he struck while driving from the scene of a larceny Tuesday on Maplewood Lane.

A 26-year-old Macomb Township man accused of striking a deputy while fleeing from a robbery scene was arraigned Wednesday with multiple felony charges.

Stephen Mispelon faces one count of assault with intent to do great bodily harm less than murder, a 10-year felony; larceny less than $200,000, a five-year felony; and third-degree fleeing a police officer, a 93-day misdemeanor. Mispelon was arraigned in 41A District Court in Shelby Township. He was placed on a $20,000 cash/surety bond.

The charges stem from an incident at 2:08 a.m. Tuesday when a homeowner called 911 to say someone was trying to steal something from her property at the 49000 block of Maplewood Lane in Macomb Township, according to the Macomb County Sheriff's Office.

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As patrol cars responded, deputies learned the suspect was walking away from the scene to Canvasback Drive. He was then ordered to stop by the first-responding deputy but instead the suspect ran to a nearby vehicle, striking the deputy as he sped away. The deputy fired two rounds at the fleeing vehicle, suffering a "through-and-through gunshot wound to his arm," the Sheriff's Office states.

Other responding deputies chased the suspect into the Valley Forge Subdivision, near 22 Mile Road and Romeo Plank. The pursuit ended when Mispelon crashed into a Sheriff's K-9 vehicle, police said.

Find out what's happening in Macomb Townshipwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The deputy who was injured is a 19-year veteran of the Sheriff's Office. He was treated and released from Henry Ford Hospital in Clinton Township. Mispelon was also treated at a local hospital and expected to fully recover from the gunshot wound, police said.

Investigators have said there's been a rash of stolen residential sprinkler-system control valves, with the Sheriff's Office receiving 40 complaints in the last month.


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