Pierce County deputy killed in crash while en route to help colleagues, department reports
A Pierce County sheriff’s deputy died on duty early Saturday while racing to help two colleagues fighting with a domestic violence suspect, the department reported.
Deputy Cooper Dyson, 25, was killed when his patrol vehicle crashed into a commercial building in the 1300 block of 112th Street East, the department said.
Dyson was married with a 2-year-old child. Dyson’s wife is pregnant.
“This is a tremendously sad loss,” Sheriff Paul Pastor said in a statement. “It is another hard reminder of the dangers and difficulties our deputies face.”
Dyson was responding to the domestic violence incident at a residence on 113th Street South in Parkland. A 911 caller reported that a young child had been assaulted and there were multiple weapons inside the home, the Sheriff’s Department said in a statement.
“One minute after the two deputies arrived at the residence, they radioed that they were fighting with the suspect and needed priority backup,” the Sheriff’s Department said. The time was approximately 3:03 a.m.
Dyson was the first deputy to respond. While he was en route, the deputies on scene radioed that they were fighting with the suspect and that they believed he was trying to access a nearby shotgun.
At 3:10 a.m., a passerby on 113th Street South called 911 to report a car had crashed into a commercial building.
Dyson died at the scene.
The deputy’s vehicle apparently rolled over and caught fire. As light broke on the scene Saturday, investigators were examining the burned out, upside down vehicle.
The stretch of 112th Street South where the accident occurred is located near Franklin Pierce High School.
Dyson’s death, the first of a Pierce County deputy in a vehicle crash since 1941, came on a day already painful for the Sheriff’s Department.
“This loss is especially painful for our department, as today marks 10 years since Deputy Kent Mundell and Sergeant Nick Hausner were shot while responding to a domestic violence incident near Eatonville,” the department reported on its Facebook page. “Deputy Mundell died 7 days later from his wounds.”
This story was originally published December 21, 2019 at 9:05 AM with the headline "Pierce County deputy killed in crash while en route to help colleagues, department reports."
