A Hillsborough County Sheriff's deputy narrowly avoided serious injury after he was hit by a drunk driver, officials said.
The crash happened just after 7 p.m. Monday at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and N. Forbes Road in Dover.
According to the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, Deputy Jonathan Winters, 27, had responded to a traffic crash in the area and was sitting in his marked car with the emergency lights activated when he was hit from behind by a 2007 Dodge Durango SUV.
Deputies said the driver of the SUV, identified as Joaquin Sanchez-Sanchez, 40, was arrested for DUI. His blood alcohol level of .246, which is three times the legal limit of .08, officials said.
Winters was not seriously injured. He was treated and released at the scene after he was examined by paramedics. Officials said he sustained only minor bumps and bruising.
Sanchez-Sanchez, who was not injured in the crash, was booked into the Orient Road Jail on charges of DUI with property damage and driving with an expired driver's license more than six months.