Grapevine officer recovering from wreck is getting strength from co-workers

A 12-year veteran of the Grapevine Police Department is on the road to recovery from the injuries he received after he was run off the freeway on Oct. 19., friends and co-workers said Tuesday.

Officer R.J. Hudson suffered from a broken foot, ribs and arm and punctured his lung during the crash that sent him careening down the embankment at Texas 121 near Hall-Johnson Road.

“He’s in physical therapy and anyone who has gone through that knows how difficult that is,” said Sgt. Rebecca Graves. “He continues to push himself to get better. He is getting a lot of his strength from his police family and the officers in the traffic unit.”

Graves has established a GoFundMe page for Hudson to help the family offset medical expenses.

Hudson, who has a wife and a daughter, was southbound on Texas 121 when his motorcycle was struck by a blue Infinity SUV, according to police. The driver of the SUV swerved to avoid debris on the roadway and struck the officer’s motorcycle, police said.

“The two most dangerous aspects of our job are traffic stops and domestic violence calls,” Graves said. “We ask people all the time to stay focused on their driving.”

Hudson is ahead of the recovery curve, but his recuperation time should be measured in months, said officer Brian Watts, who works in the traffic unit with Hudson.

“He’s doing really well,” Watts said. “He’s working really hard.”

This story was originally published October 31, 2017 at 9:46 PM with the headline "Grapevine officer recovering from wreck is getting strength from co-workers."