Father of teen arrested for hitting MPD officers says son fled out of fear of police

The two MPD officers hit by a car are now out of the hospital. The father of the teenager driving the car says that fear of being harmed by police is the reason that his son left the scene.

"This is a young boy that made a mistake. We all make mistakes."

Mr. Fowlkes, as he prefers to be called, is the father of the 18-year-old driver who was involved in a crash that left two Milwaukee Police officers hurt Thursday night. The teen left the scene. Fowlkes says he could hear the fear in his son's voice when he got the call about what happened. 

"He was very shaken up and scared. Just a young boy scared. He tried to get to me for help, for advice on what to do."

Police say the crash happened on Sherman and Villard around 5 p.m. Thursday evening.

Police say the 18-year-old driver crashed into another car and then hit two Milwaukee Police officers who were on foot patrol. The car was later found on N. 37th Street.

The teenager was found a short time later on N. 78th Street where he was arrested.

"He wasn't running. He parked the car at his mom's house. They found it at mom's house. That's not running. He was just scared."

Fowlkes says his son was scared of being hurt by police.

He says he's never had any run-ins with the law and has aspirations of becoming an actor.

"I just don't want him to get railroaded by the system."

Now, Fowlkes says he's working hard to make sure his son gets a fair shake in court. 

"I'm willing to go all the way to fight the whole justice system for my son. That's my son. I brought him into this world. He's not just an object or something you throw away."

Three passengers inside the car were also arrested. The injured officers have been released from the hospital.