Man at center of Friday night hit-and-run near Lacey was not arrested. Here’s why
A 37-year-old driver at the center of a Friday night hit-and-run near Lacey was not arrested, but he did receive a criminal citation, a spokesman for the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office said.
The reason he wasn’t taken into custody is because of COVID-19, said Sgt. Roland Weiss. That’s because the Sheriff’s Office is trying to limit exposure to the coronavirus by deputies, inmates or others.
Weiss said the Sheriff’s Office is still making arrests for violent felonies and sex crimes, as well for incidents of domestic violence and DUI, but generally not for other crimes.
As part of the criminal citation process, the 37-year-old man was directed to appear in a Thurston County court, and if he doesn’t appear, a warrant could be issued for his arrest, Weiss said. Criminal citations also are reviewed by the Thurston County Prosecutor’s Office, he said.
A police report gives the following account of what happened on Friday night:
About 9:40 p.m. Friday, the 37-year-old man was driving in a car he had just purchased for $400 and was headed south on Carpenter Road near Sixth Avenue Southeast when witnesses told deputies he drove into oncoming traffic and hit a Honda Accord being driven by a 30-year-old Chehalis woman. He then drove north and crashed into another oncoming car, according to the report.
The man then got out of his car and began to walk away from the scene, but was confronted by a witness who told him he shouldn’t leave. The suspect pulled out a knife and yelled at the witness, but the witness replied that he had a gun.
The man threw his knife over a fence.
The witness later told police that he did not have a gun, but only said that to prevent the suspect from attacking him. He also told police he did not want to pursue charges, according to the report.
When detained by deputies, the man said his car had “just locked up on him and crashed.”
However, the suspect could not answer why he had tried to leave the scene, or explain how his knife had ended up on the other side of a fence, according to the report.
The suspect faces the following possible charges: one count each for driving with a suspended license, operating a vehicle without an ignition interlock, reckless driving, hit-and-run involving vehicle or property, and hit-and-run with accident/injury, which is identified as a felony in the report.
The 30-year-old Chehalis woman suffered cuts to her head.
A deputy at the scene informed the suspect that “he was under arrest,” but he later handed the suspect his “paperwork,” and told him the courts would be contacting him instead, because of COVID-19 restrictions.
This story was originally published August 4, 2020 at 5:45 AM.
