Warrant issued for Pierce County man accused of firing gun inside car with children

A warrant has been issued for a Pierce County man accused of assaulting the mother of his children and repeatedly firing a gun in the car as the family drove to go camping.

Mathew Weaver, 37, is charged with eight criminal counts in connection with the Aug. 18 incident.

Investigators said they have been unable to find Weaver since he checked out of a local hospital Aug. 31 before police arrived to arrest him.

He is charged with second-degree assault, three counts of reckless endangerment, second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, two counts of violating a domestic violence court order and resisting arrest.

Charging papers give this account:

Weaver has a history of assaulting loved ones and has at least twice been convicted of violating protection orders.

At the time of the Aug. 18 incident, the mother of Weaver’s children had a protection order in place against him but agreed to go camping with him and the couple’s three children.

Before leaving, Weaver’s backpack fell out of the vehicle and he blamed the children. He became upset after their mother defended them and slapped her.

As the woman was driving, Weaver allegedly pulled out a gun and threatened to kill himself.

He then fired several times out the window and into the car roof near the woman’s head, as well as hitting her in the face with a coffee mug, records show.

In the back seat were their children, ages 2, 4 and 9.

“The defendant was assaulting her and shooting the gun next to her head while she was driving, causing the car to swerve all over the road to include off the road,” prosecutors wrote in charging papers.

“She said she had never been so scared in her life.”

The woman went to a family member’s house and Weaver fled. Police found him later that day with a K-9 search. They also found a revolver in a nearby wooded area.

Weaver was taken to a hospital for treatment after a police dog bit his arm during the arrest. Police told Weaver he could not check out of the hospital because he was on a police hold, but he did so anyway.

The woman told police Weaver had called her from the hospital and threatened her.

Weaver is 5 feet 9 and 145 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes. He frequents Fircrest and Parkland.

Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to call Tacoma-Pierce County Crimestoppers at 800-222-TIPS (8477).

This story was originally published September 19, 2016 at 10:36 AM with the headline "Warrant issued for Pierce County man accused of firing gun inside car with children."