Attempted murder charge for WA man accused of hurling concrete into car window
A man accused of throwing a piece of concrete at a car that crushed part of man’s face near downtown Tacoma on Saturday said he did so because he was having a mental breakdown, charging documents say.
Pierce County prosecutors charged Trevor Wagner, 38, with second-degree attempted murder and first-degree assault, according to court records.
On Monday, Superior Court Commissioner Barbara McInvaille ordered Wagner, who listed a Vancouver, Washington address, held without bail pending a competency evaluation.
Details from charging documents
Calls came in starting at 10:11 p.m. that a pedestrian on state Route 509 said he wanted to kill himself. A state trooper responded to the initial call but could not find anyone on the side of the freeway, according to charging documents.
Another caller reported seeing a pedestrian closer to Interstate 5 who was throwing rocks at passing vehicles, documents show.
At about 10:29 p.m., it was reported that a car was struck by a possible rock. A 64-year-old Puyallup man who was a passenger had been struck and severely injured. The driver, a 63-year-old Puyallup woman, was uninjured.
The man was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.
A bus driver later called in to report the pedestrian was running after the bus with a stick in the Pacific Avenue area.
The pedestrian, later identified as Wagner, was detained. He allegedly said he was having mental breakdown. He said he tried to call the Washington State Patrol, documents show. Wagner spoke of his frustrations for not getting a response and asked what took so long when a trooper said they had tried to find him.
When asked why he was on the freeway, Wagner allegedly said he had been trying to get people to call 911. He also said he threw the rock because no one would call 911.
When a trooper told Wagner he was under arrest for assault, he claimed he did not say he threw the rock, charging papers show.
Wagner again said no one called 911 for him and alleged he broke the window of a van because of his breakdown.
“He said that no one seemed concerned, but that he guessed they were concerned after something happens, seemingly referencing the person he struck with a rock,” documents say.
Back at the scene where the Puyallup man was injured, there was blood on the ground in front of the victim’s car. The windshield was destroyed, documents show.
Documents show there was a piece of concrete 10 by 10 inches square concrete on the floorboard of the car with glass and blood everywhere.
Prosecutors wrote that the man’s wife told detectives the left side of her husband’s face/skull was crushed. He was scheduled for surgery in the next day.
Wagner has previous convictions from Oregon, including in 2020 for menacing and resisting arrest, carry concealed/possession of a firearm and unlawful use of a weapon, court records show.
