Gary man charged for disarming, punching officer

CROWN POINT, Ind. (AP) -- A northern Indiana man faces felony charges for allegedly disarming a police officer and repeatedly punching him during a traffic stop.

Fifty-one-year-old Linzell Davell Brooks was charged with four counts, including resisting law enforcement, following Monday's attack on Griffith Patrolman Robert Hemphill. The Post-Tribune of Merrillville reports the officer pulled over Brooks because the Gary man's pickup truck had an expired license plate.

Court documents allege that Brooks gave Hemphill a false name, then pulled away down an alley and parked behind a business.

Brooks then grabbed the pursuing officer's pistol and drove away in his truck with Hemphill hanging onto an open door. He then allegedly punched the officer several times in the face before Hemphill managed to get Brooks into his squad car.