An assistant Cook County state`s attorney who is accused of striking a Chicago police officer with her car and leaving the scene will be prosecuted by the Illinois attorney general`s office, officials said Thursday.
Obyrietta Scott-Benson, 36, of the South Side, head of the state`s attorney`s child-support enforcement division, will be prosecuted by that office to ensure impartiality, said Andy Knott, a spokesman for the state`s attorney.
Scott-Benson was charged Wednesday with failing to obey a police officer, striking a pedestrian in the roadway and leaving the scene of a personal-injury accident after her westbound car allegedly struck Officer James Brogan as he directed traffic at Randolph and Dearborn Streets, said police Lt. John Tolley.
Brogan experienced pain in his shoulder and neck but was not seriously injured, Tolley said.
Scott-Benson was stopped several blocks away, he said.
Scott-Benson could not be reached for comment. She began a maternity leave Thursday, one day earlier than she had planned, Knott said.
Knott said Scott-Benson spoke to high-ranking officials in the office about the incident and that investigators also were speaking to three passengers who were in her car.
She will appear in court Sept. 17.
