VIDEO: Man drags Knoxville police officers, rams into cruisers during chase, KPD says

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) - A Knoxville man is facing numerous charges after he assaulted several police officers and led them on a chase, according to officials with the Knoxville Police Department.

On Monday around 12:20 p.m., officers with the Knoxville Police Department were near McTeer Street and Fillmore Avenue because of a drug complaint, when they stopped a silver Infiniti sedan for traffic violations, KPD Communications Manager Scott Erland said.

After an initial investigation, Erland said officers suspected the driver, 52-year-old David Esserman, had drugs on his person. When Esserman was asked to step out of the car, he started the car and tried to drive away.

While trying to stop Esserman from leaving, two KPD officers were injured after being drug by Esserman’s car, according to Erland. Both officers were hurt and were treated at the University of Tennessee Medical Center.

After Esserman left the scene, KPD said officers began chasing him, including deputies with the Knox County Sheriff’s Office and KCSO Airwatch, which is the agency’s helicopter unit.

KCSO took the lead from KPD on the chase, which ended in the area of Whittle Springs Road and Hoitt Avenue, Erland said, adding that a Knox County deputy used a PIT technique to stop Esserman’s car. That’s when an officer uses their cruiser to force a suspect’s car to rotate, forcing them to stop or risk crashing.

After Esserman stopped the car, he ran over the foot of a KCSO deputy and rammed an occupied KCSO K9 cruiser before being taken into custody, Erland said.

Erland added that a KCSO K9 alerted on the car, prompting officers to search and find over 350 grams of suspected marijuana and over $40,000 inside.

Officers seized the vehicle and money found during the search and Esserman was transported to the Knox County Jail.

Esserman is now facing a long list of charges:

• Four counts of aggravated assault on a first responder
• Evading arrest with risk of death or injury
• Resisting arrest
• Sale and delivery of schedule VI drugs of over two pounds
• Speeding

According to Kimberly Glenn with the sheriff’s office, none of the deputies involved in the chase needed treatment.