FORSYTH, Ga. — Corporal Thomas Haskins with the Monroe County Sheriff's Office points out his battle wound from a traffic stop back in April. "It really just, it definitely changes things, makes you aware that anything can happen," says Haskins.
Haskins stopped a car on the highway for following an 18-wheeler too closely. He says when he got to the car, he smelled weed and called for backup.
While searching the car, they found one pound of marijuana in the back. As they went to arrest the person, the unexpected happened -- the driver started to run.
"I caught up to the subject and tackled them. At that point, when I tackled him, we basically went to the ground. He sprung up and elbowed me right in the forehead," says Haskins.
Officers like Haskins are trained to expect the unexpected.
Sergeant Brandon Brown, Assistant Commander for the State Patrol Post in Forsyth, says troopers go through extensive training before they are alone on the road. That includes training in the classroom and with supervision on patrol.
"You never know what you're pulling over. I told you earlier, we hate the term, 'routine traffic stop.' The only thing we know when we stop a car is what kind of car it is and what we stopped them for," says Brown.
Brown says they are trained to pay attention to the driver's behavior before approaching a car, and look for any red flags.
"Whether the vehicle stops quick, drives for a while, those are all indicators of something maybe not right," says Brown.
He says that can be harder to do at night, because, well, it's harder to see. It's a big risk, but Haskins says it comes with the job.
Sergeant Brown says officers are taught the basics, but develop their own safety tools to keep themselves safe.