TAMPA, Fla. – A man who was running through traffic on a busy Tampa street bit a sheriff’s deputy who tried to restrain him early Thursday, officials said.
Drivers on Causeway Boulevard called 911 around 12:30 a.m. Thursday to report that a man was running between cars on the four-lane highway, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office said in a news release.
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Deputies ordered the man to get out of the road, but he refused, spokewoman Crystal Clark told news outlets.
He began running and the deputies chased after him. At that point the man became “extremely violent," Clark said
The man bit the deputy multiple times on the hand and arm, she said.
The man suffered a medical episode after being taken into custody and was taken to a hospital for treatment. Clark said the man was in critical condition on Thursday.
Officials said he will face battery on a law enforcement officer charges.
The man had multiple drugs in his system, including methamphetamine, she said.
The deputy was also taken to a hospital for treatment.
The man was held under Florida’s Baker Act, which allows the temporary commitment of someone who poses a threat to themselves or others due to mental illness.