ANAHEIM : Officer’s Motorcycle Hit; Driver Held

An Orange man was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder Thursday morning after he allegedly rammed his car into the motorcycle of an Anaheim police officer who had pulled him over for a minor traffic violation.

The officer, who fired several shots at the man’s car as it was being driven away, suffered only minor injuries in the 9:08 a.m. incident and did not require hospitalization, Anaheim Police Lt. Vince Howard said.

Joseph Gawthorp Barrett, 44, is suspected of “purposely striking the officer’s motorcycle, knocking him to the ground,” Howard said.

Police said Barrett fled south on Katella Avenue from Clementine Street. He was chased for a short time by two patrol cars before losing control of his car and crashing into a home in the 600 block of South Ohio Street.

Barrett and his passenger, William Lawrence Powell, 21, of Orange, surrendered to police without incident.

“We have no idea why he hit the officer or why he tried to take off,” Howard said.

Resident Billie Anderson, 75, said she was home listening to the radio when the car ran into her house, causing minor stucco damage “about the size of a baseball.”

“I just watched from the window and saw the guys get out of the car, then I saw the police,” Anderson said. “It was scary.”

Barrett is being held at City Jail on $250,000 bail. Powell was arrested on suspicion of being under the influence of drugs, Howard said.