‘Excuses.’ Man fails to show for sentencing in hit-and-run death of JBLM soldier
Updated, Sept. 22: Grems has been taken into custody and ordered held without bail until a sentencing hearing on Oct. 6, court records show.
Original post: A warrant has been issued for the arrest of a 38-year-old man after he failed to show in Pierce County Superior Court for sentencing in the hit-and-run death of Lance Melder.
Ryan Edward Grems pleaded guilty July 16 to failure to remain at accident resulting in death and theft of a motor vehicle for the March 30, 2024 crash.
Grems has been on a home-monitoring device since he posted a $50,000 bond following his arrest in October 2024. Court documents from July 22 show he completed 59 days on that device and an alcohol-monitoring device.
The defense requested that Grems be taken off the monitor while he dealt with a medical issue after he pleaded guilty. The court required him to obtain a bail-bond rider since he was out of custody before his sentence, according to the Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.
Grems was supposed to be sentenced Aug. 28, and he appeared for the hearing. The defense team requested a delay in sentencing, citing a medical issue. Superior Court Judge Karena Kirkendoll ordered Grems’ sentencing set over to 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, Sept. 10.
On Wednesday, Grems did not appear, and his attorney, Shelby Winters, said during the hearing she had communicated with him and said Grems was at the emergency room Tuesday night for medical issues. There were also issues with him taking the bus to court Wednesday morning.
The sentencing was then moved to 11 a.m. Grems again did not appear. Winters told Judge TaTeasha Davis that she did not have additional information or communication with him.
Davis issued the bench warrant, upon request from prosecutors. No bail will be accepted, according to the order.
Grems crashed his 2000 Chevrolet Silverado into Melder’s 2012 Ford Focus on southbound I-5 north of the Tacoma Mall area. Grems reportedly ditched the Silverado and carjacked a white GMC Acadia before driving off, according to charging documents.
Melder, 39, died at the scene. Investigators identified Grems as the suspect through blood samples from vehicles that matched him, witness reports and the history of ownership of the Silverado.
Originally from Temple, Texas, Melder was stationed at Joint Base Lewis-McChord as a tanker and had been in the Army since 2006. He was married to Alyssa Melder for 14 and a half years at the time of his death. He was a father to four children and was considered a celebrity in their home, Alyssa Melder told The News Tribune last year.
Alyssa Melder, who waited to deliver her victim-impact statement, told The News Tribune Wednesday that she was disgusted with Grems as a person and believed there has been no accountability in her husband’s death.
“I worked really hard on my impact statement, and for me, it felt like being able to stand up and deliver that would have been like an ending to this terrible chapter of my life as far as the courts go,” she said. “And for the last few weeks because it was rescheduled, I hear nothing but excuses from Grems, and I have no sympathy.”
A friend of Melder’s drove about six hours from Spokane to be at the sentencing, she said. Alyssa Melder, who lives in Texas with her and Lance Melder’s children, said she has had to uproot her life for the court dates. She also expressed her disappointment with the legal system, saying that Grems should have stayed in jail from the time her husband was killed.
“He shouldn’t have been allowed to post bail because he was a known flight risk. I can’t tell you how many times they’ve called me and asked me if I would be OK with him being taken off the the ankle monitor,” Alyssa Melder said.
Wednesday was the first time she learned that Grems was not on an ankle monitor, which Melder said was “disheartening.”
“I feel like he’s just out there living his life, good or bad, however he chooses to live it,” she said.“ I’m very angry that he could do something like this and still get to just be out and about. And I want people to see his face and his name and be like, ‘Oh my gosh, that’s that guy, you know, look at the horrible things that he’s done.”
This story was originally published September 10, 2025 at 2:58 PM.
