Officer accidently shot by own gun during pursuit

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An undercover St.Petersburg police officer suffered a gunshot from his own firearm during a pursuit and arrest, according to St. Petersburg police.

It started around 11 p.m. Friday, when officers tried to pull over a suspected reckless driver on 28th St near 11th Av S. The driver sped off, but officers did not pursue. 

A short time later, undercover officers in the Violent Crimes Task Force threw stopsticks on the road and flattened the car's tires on Freemont Terrace S. near 29th St. The car kept going on flat tires, and the driver, a 16 year old boy, jumped out of the rolling car and ran.

Police said. An undercover officer jumped into the rolling car to try to stop it just as it hit the back of an unoccupied Pinellas sheriff's deputy's vehicle. When the car hit the cruiser, the officer's gun accidently discharged and the bullet hit his hand.

Police said the officer had serious, but non-life threatening injuries to his hand. He was treated at Bayfront Health Hospital. His name will not be released because of his undercover status.

The teenage driver was arrested and charged with fleeing and eluding, resisting arrest without violence, and operating a vehicle without a valid driver's license.