Man on parole shot by Nassau cop after he tries to run down officers on Westbury driveway, police say

A Nassau police officer shot and wounded a Baldwin man as he tried to run down a group of officers with a stolen car in the driveway of a Westbury home early Saturday, police said.

Levaughn Tingle, 25, who is on parole for burglary, was taken to a hospital with multiple gunshot wounds, which police said were not life-threatening. An officer fired several rounds at Tingle, though police did not immediately say how many times he was hit.

Three police officers were taken to a hospital for evaluation, but were not physically injured, a police spokesman said.

The shooting occurred after officers responded to a call about a suspicious car in front of a house at 722 Clinton St. about 4:20 a.m.

As officers approached the car on foot, Tingle tried to drive away and crashed into a parked vehicle, police said.

The car then drove toward the officers, who retreated to a nearby driveway, police said.

Tingle pursued them up the driveway and the officers maneuvered to keep from being pinned against the house, police said.

That's when one of the officers shot Tingle.

"I heard a bunch of shots and the police yelling at somebody," said Carmela Alvarez, 29, who lives a block from the shooting. "I went outside and I saw somebody who looked like he was shot, with cops and cop cars all around him."

Tingle, of 655 Joy Blvd., Baldwin, has previous convictions for burglary, petty larceny and possession of stolen property, according to police.

He also has an active arrest warrant for failing to report for parole, police said. The car he was driving had been reported stolen, police said.

On Saturday, a black sedan could be seen resting partly on the lawn of the house, with several bullet holes in the driver-side door and the driver-side window broken.

Tingle has not yet been charged in Saturday's incident, and Nassau police said the investigation is continuing.

Bishop Lionel Harvey of First Baptist Cathedral of Westbury said residents of the community starting calling him a few hours after the incident, alarmed police had shot an unarmed black man.

He said he spent the day disseminating details to "quell any rush to judgment" in a community sensitive to high-profile shootings in Ferguson, Missouri, and elsewhere.

"Something like this can mushroom and become a big issue, which is why it's important to get good information to quell any misgivings or misunderstandings," Harvey said.

With Kevin Deutsch

and Robert Brodsky