A Nassau County police officer shot and wounded a man in Locust Valley who allegedly drove his vehicle at the officer during a traffic stop on Monday night, authorities said.
Neither the officer nor the man was identified following the shooting on Horse Hollow Road shortly after 10 p.m.
The man was being treated at a local hospital for non-life threatening injuries, police said. The officer, who is a member of Nassau police’s Special Operations Criminal Intelligence Rapid Response Team, was treated for a knee injury and released, police said.
A police spokeswoman said officers were performing a traffic stop as part of a drug investigation when the man attempted to flee and struck the officer, injuring his knee. The officer shot the man moments later out of fear for his safety, the spokeswoman said.
The case marks the fourth police-involved shooting in six weeks on Long Island.
Nassau County police shot and killed an armed home invasion suspect and his victim, a 21-year-old Hofstra student, in Uniondale on May 17.
Nassau officers shot and wounded an Albertson man who they said pointed a pellet gun at them June 17.
And Suffolk County police fatally shot a Shirley man, identified Tuesday as 46-year-old Paul M. Caruso, who authorities said fired more than a dozen rounds from a shotgun and a rifle at officers on Friday night.
Police are continuing the investigation into the shootings.
