DPS: Driver who struck, killed Salt River police officer was texting and driving

PHOENIX (FOX 10) - Authorities say the driver who struck and killed a Salt River police officer on the Loop 101 on Tuesday night was texting and driving at the time of the collision. According to the Arizona Department of Public Safety, Officer Clayton Townsend was conducting a traffic stop on a white vehicle for expired registration along the northbound lanes of the Loop 101, just south of the McDowell Road off-ramp, when he was hit by a black vehicle.