Boy recovers after being hit by deputy’s cruiser

BRUNSWICK COUNTY, NC (WWAY) — A Brunswick County teenager is recovering tonight after being hit by a Sheriff’s deputy at 50 miles per hour.

“I didn’t even want to get out of bed, so I’ve just have been sleeping all day,” 14-year-old Andrew Walton said.

Just by looking at Walton it’s hard to believe that he was hit by a car while on his bike Wednesday night. He says he and his friend Jake King were riding along Danford Road near Bolivia after dark when the unexpected happened.

“We’re going down the road,” Walton said. “I had dropped my phone. I don’t remember who picked it up. Then I just looked down, then I looked the other way and just saw headlights in my face.”

The headlights were that of Brunswick County Sheriff Dep. Andrew Lentz. He swerved, but ended up hitting Walton.

“Then I remember waking up on the pavement and Jake dragging me off,” Walton said.

Lentz’s car ended up near this phone pole on the side of the road. Walton was taken to a hospital in Wilmington. He was released a few hours later with no serious injuries, but it’s an experience he’ll never forget.

“I thank the Lord that I’m still alive and here,” Walton said. “Just a life-changing experience.”

Highway Patrol investigators say Dep. Lentz appears to have done nothing wrong, adding that Walton caused the wreck because he wasn’t paying attention and drove his bike out onto the road.