The Arkansas State Police trooper who used his vehicle to stop a car being driven the wrong way on Interstate 40 is recovering after his fourth surgery at Sparks Regional Medical Center in Fort Smith.
Trooper First Class Roy Moomey, 41, of Van Buren was injured in the crash near Alma in the early morning of Aug. 8.
Matthew C. Choate, 24, of Fort Smith died in the collision, according to an accident summary from the state police.
Marc McCune, prosecutor for Crawford County, said Moomey used his vehicle to stop Choate and protect other motorists on the interstate.
"He positioned his car in front of the cars heading towards the Choate vehicle to protect them," McCune said in an email.
The crash is still under investigation, said Capt. Bryan Davis with the State Police in Fort Smith. He said Moomey has been moved from the hospital's intensive care unit into a private room.
"We have a long recovery ahead of us but he has been moved outside of ICU," Davis said.
McCune posted on his Facebook page Monday afternoon: "Roy is out of ICU and doing great! Started rehab today by getting moved to a chair and sitting for an hour. I delivered cards from all over the state today. Roy is really moved by all the support he is getting."
McCune said Moomey had undergone four surgeries since the crash. He said Moomey had broken ribs, vertebra, leg, ankle, pelvis and wrist, in addition to having two collapsed lungs.
Police received a call at about 3:35 a.m. Aug. 8 about a vehicle traveling westbound in the eastbound lanes on I-40 in Crawford County.
"Trooper Moomey was dispatched to the area, where his patrol car was struck by the vehicle being driven in the wrong direction," according to a news release from the State Police.
According to the accident summary, Choate was driving a 2012 Ford, and Moomey was driving a 2014 Dodge.
When asked if Moomey had turned his police cruiser into the path of the Ford to stop it, Bill Sadler, a spokesman for the state police, said, "That information has not been validated as accurate."
The morning the crash occurred, McCune posted on Facebook: " Roy put his life on the line to save others on the interstate. The drunk driver was killed in the accident."
Moomey has been employed by the state police for six years, and is the son of a Little Rock police detective.
Previously of Maumelle, Moomey is a graduate of Catholic High School in Little Rock and the University of Mississippi, according to an earlier news release from the state police. In 2009, he was assigned to work the Highway Patrol Division for Troop H in Crawford County.
In May, Moomey received a life-saving award from the state police for pulling a man from a burning pickup Jan. 22, 2015. The vehicle had run off Interstate 49.
Metro on 08/16/2016
