Boise Man Arrested after Hitting Paramedic

BOISE, Idaho (KTVB) -- A Boise man was arrested Monday after police say he struck a paramedic as he was being placed into an ambulance. Nathaniel Eugene Hammersmith, 26, appeared to be under the influence when he walked up to a fire station near South 16th Street and West Front Street. The firefighters tried to talk to him, but Hammersmith was "uncooperative and aggressive," and ran across the street, police say. Officers arrived and found the suspect, who couldn't stand up and was barely able to talk, police said.

They called for paramedics to take the man to a hospital to be evaluated. But Hammersmith became violent as he was loaded into an ambulance, and punched a paramedic in the shoulder, according to police.

After he was cleared by doctors at the hospital, Hammersmith was arrested. He was booked into the Ada County Jail and charged with felony battery upon a health care worker. Hammersmith is due to appear in court Tuesday afternoon.