An RCMP officer in Newfoundland and Labrador was treated in hospital Thursday after being dragged under the open door of a speeding vehicle.

Police said the incident happened in Stephenville, on the west coast of Newfoundland, at about 4:45 p.m., after officers went to a halfway house to arrest a man for parole violations.

The man ran from them, police said, to his vehicle parked outside a nearby apartment complex.

Sgt. Wayne Newell said one of the officers got hold of the man through the open door of the car, but she was knocked down and pinned under the door when the driver attempted to speed away.

"He put the vehicle in reverse … and basically nailed the vehicle in reverse," Newell said. "The female officer that was there got trapped underneath the open door and became pinned and was dragged about 15 feet under the vehicle."

Newell said the officer suffered serious bruising and injuries to her head and legs.

"She's going to be very sore for sometime … recovering from that."

Newell said the officer did what she was trained to do, despite risking her own safety.

"This is a case where the person was told that he was under arrest, and fled from lawful custody. The officer did what she was trained to do, to try to safely take the person into custody, and he had gotten into a vehicle and attempted to flee and posed a danger to himself, to the police officer and possibly to others. So, we find no fault in what she did."

Police spotted the vehicle a short time later on the road to the local garbage dump, where it had been abandoned.

A police dog was brought to the area and it tracked the man to a water pumphouse in the nearby woods.

Police said he was arrested without any further problems.

Jamie Malcolm Stagg, 29, faces a string of charges:

• Aggravated assault on a police officer.
• Resisting arrest.
• Escaping lawful custody.
• Flight from police.
• Violating parole conditions

Stagg, who Newell said was on parole after serving time for armed robbery, has been remanded in custody until Monday morning.