Joel Popp: Michigan state trooper dies after being struck by a car while conducting a traffic stop

DETROIT, MICHIGAN: A Michigan state trooper tragically lost his life after he was struck by a car while conducting a traffic stop on Wednesday evening, January 24, Detroit Free Press reports.

According to a news release from Michigan State Police, Trooper Joel Popp, 39, was investigating a suspected impaired driver on northbound Interstate 75 near Birch Run when another driver “struck two patrol cars and Popp who was outside his patrol vehicle” at the time. 

Joel Popp died at a hospital while undergoing treatment

Popp was transported to Hurley Medical Center where he later died. The 81-year-old man who hit the officer sustained “serious injuries” in the crash “but is expected to survive.”

“This is a message none of us wishes to deliver,” Col. James F Grady II, director of the MSP, said in the department’s announcement regarding Popp’s death. “I ask that you please keep his family, fellow troopers and all whose lives he has touched in your thoughts,” Grady added.

When did Joel Popp join the police department?

Popp joined MSP in January 2020, according to the department. He was a graduate of the 137th Trooper Recruit School and served at the Tri-City Post “his entire career.” The officer is survived by his wife ,Stefanie, and young daughter, MSP added.

In its news release, the MSP acknowledged the officers and emergency responders “who assisted at the scene and who continue to provide support to our department during this difficult time.” “We also want to thank the staff and medical professionals at Hurley Medical Center for their care and compassion,” the department added.

Texas grandmother dies after a car crashes into her apartment building

Meaww previously reported that a grandmother has tragically lost her life after a car crashed into her Garland, Texas, apartment building on Tuesday, January 23. Authorities said a man was driving a Buick LeSabre near Fieldcrest Drive and Jupiter Road after 9 am local time when he lost control of the vehicle during what may have been a suspected medical episode. 

The driver hit another car before continuing through the complex’s entrance and slamming into the building in the 1700 block of North Jupiter Road, the Morning News and NBC affiliate KXAS-TV reported. Plautila Aguirre, 71, was inside the first-floor apartment hit by the Buick, as per the reports. She was transported to a local hospital where she later died.

Elda Deleon, Aguirre’s daughter, described her mother to KXAS-TV as a “sweet person” who always had “a lot of friends.” “It’s hard. Really hard because nobody is ready for this day,” Deleon said. She later added, “Wherever [Aguirre is] at, wherever she goes, she has a smile for everybody, she tries to help everybody.”