FRANKLINTON - A Washington parish deputy was seriously injured when an impaired driver hit his unit head-on late Thursday night. 

The parish sheriff's office said Sergeant John O'Hern was responding to a call near Highway 25 when another driver crashed into his unit head-on. O'Hern was seriously injured, suffering a shattered pelvis and a dislocated femur. 

"When Sergeant O’Hern was sworn in with the WPSO, he made it a top priority to arrest drunk drivers and keep our roads safe," the sheriff's office said. "His dedication to this cause makes this incident especially poignant."

"We know the road to recovery will be long and challenging for Sergeant O’Hern, but we stand by him and support him fully."