Ex-Pierce County sheriff’s leader admits to DUI vehicular assault, obstructing
The man who was leading the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigation Division when he drank, got behind the wheel of his pickup while off duty and caused a rollover collision, pleaded guilty Tuesday to vehicular assault DUI and obstructing a law enforcement officer.
Retired Maj. Chadwick Brooks Dickerson appeared Tuesday morning in Superior Court before Judge Alicia Marie Burton. After Burton heard from prosecutors and the defense, she sentenced him to three months in jail.
“The fact that Mr. Dickerson was a law enforcement officer really cuts both ways,” Burton said before she imposed the sentence. “Yeah, morally he is held to a higher ground by all of us, by the community, by the public. And in some ways, though, his consequences for criminal behavior are much more than the bookkeeper that comes before me or the Walmart greeter.”
Dickerson was accused of causing a wreck last summer while impaired by alcohol that injured an 8-year-old boy, his pregnant mother and his 57-year-old grandmother. According to charging documents, a friend who Dickerson golfed with in DuPont that morning said Dickerson had four drinks at the golf course. Dickerson dropped the friend off at his home after the round, where he allegedly had at least one more alcoholic seltzer.
Then Dickerson drove north on 132nd Avenue East in his 2015 Dodge Ram 2500. Data from the vehicle, according to police reports, showed he was going 24-29 mph in the seconds before he entered the 288th Street East intersection, where he hit a Ford Expedition traveling west at 47-51 mph. The intersection was uncontrolled, meaning it didn’t have any stop signs or traffic signals.
The Dodge hit the Ford’s driver’s side fender, according to police reports, and the impact rolled the Ford onto its side. It was carrying a family of six, including a 27-year-old pregnant woman, her husband, mother and her three children ages 3, 4 and 8.
The grandmother’s ribs and back were fractured, according to the probable cause document. The 8-year-old boy suffered bruisings, abrasions and a traumatic hernia on his left side. Dickerson was also hurt. He was treated for three broken ribs and other injuries at a medical facility in South Hill that afternoon.
Dickerson had no prior criminal history and faced a standard-range of 3-9 months in jail for his vehicular assault DUI charge. He has been out of custody since his arrest, when he spent a night in jail. At the conclusion of the hearing, Sheriff’s Office deputies placed him in handcuffs, and he was led out of the room.
Prosecutors recommended a 3-month sentence. Arguing for that length of punishment, deputy prosecuting attorney Loren Halstrom spoke about Dickerson’s demeanor at the collision scene and the inaction of some deputies.
Halstrom said Dickerson acted casually when the Sheriff’s Office first responded to the scene and asked if he and his family could clear things off the road. Halstrom said that was important evidence for the investigation. Halstrom also said Dickerson challenged a deputy about using her body camera when she spoke to him.
“The scary thing about this case is Mr. Dickerson was very close to getting away with this,” Halstrom said. “At the collision scene, not a single officer asked him if he’d had a drink.”
Fortunately, Halstrom said, a collision technician from the Sheriff’s Office who arrived at the scene later insisted that the Washington State Patrol needed to respond. Halstrom said even after that Dickerson left the scene, no one notified the State Patrol.
Dickerson’s defense attorney, Jared Ausserer, said that since their initial conversations Dickerson has wanted to take responsibility. Ausserer said there had been some suggestion that his client was trying to manipulate the scene to get away with it, but that’s not what happened.
Ausserer said Dickerson was severely injured in the collision and suffered fractured ribs. The defense attorney said Dickerson stayed on the scene until he was told he could leave.
“His wife and daughter showed up at the scene,” Ausserer said. “They got his personal checks out of his truck, and they took him directly to the hospital, where he was contacted by the Washington State Patrol some time later and cooperated with the investigation.”
Vehicular assault DUI is a felony. Obstructing a law enforcement officer is a gross misdemeanor. Burton read Dickerson’s guilty-plea statement in court, which said he operated a vehicle under the influence of alcohol and caused substantial bodily harm to three people. Dickerson admitted he left the scene to seek medical treatment before the Washington State Patrol arrived, which delayed officials in the discharge of their duties.
Dickerson’s blood-alcohol content was found to be 0.091 when his blood was drawn more than three hours after the incident, according to charging documents. Halstrom estimated his blood-alcohol content was at least 0.13 at the time of the collision. The legal limit in Washington is 0.08.
Family of Dickerson and the victims of the wreck attended the hearing.
Amber Arciniega, who was pregnant at the time of the incident, and her mother, Debra Hunton, spoke before Burton imposed her sentence. Both described the physical and emotional effects of the collision and how the Sheriff’s Office’s response had fractured their trust in local law enforcement.
Hunton said it had been emotionally traumatizing to relive what happened as the case played out in the media, and while the situation was discussed publicly.
“Even more painful was the belief that in those critical moments after the crash, protecting Chad was prioritized over helping my family,” Hunton said. “That realization has been devastating, and it has deeply shaken our trust in those who are supposed to serve and protect us.”
Arciniega, who appeared in court holding an infant and at times spoke through tears, described the fear she felt not knowing whether her unborn child was OK after the collision.
“I remember thinking about the pressure of the seatbelt across my stomach and the impact of the airbag on it,” Arciniega said. “I was terrified the force of the crash had taken my baby from me.”
Before Burton read out Dickerson’s sentence, she asked him if he wanted to say anything to the court. Dickerson shook his head no. Burton later said she could tell from Dickerson’s demeanor that he had regret, guilt and shame.
The Sheriff’s Office initially responded to the July 12, 2025 incident. Body-camera video showed deputies disagreeing over whether the wreck was vehicular assault. Dickerson appeared in the footage wearing a striped orange-and-red shirt and holding a plastic water bottle. According to police reports, a person who went to the scene later told detectives that he saw the “causing driver” chugging water.
The State Patrol took over the investigation at the request of the Sheriff’s Office. Troopers responded to the crash site and the medical facility where Dickerson was treated.
A trooper who went to the scene was reportedly surprised that Dickerson had left and that debris from the collision had been cleaned up. According to the probable cause document, Dickerson’s wife and adult daughter — who were at the scene before deputies arrived — were allowed to remove items from the Ram and pick up debris. The daughter later said she did not remove any alcohol from the vehicle.
Sheriff Keith Swank later announced an internal investigation of deputies who went to the collision scene. When it concluded, the Sheriff’s Office said it had found that a deputy’s camera was turned off or not activated at all during critical stages of the response. No formal discipline was imposed on the deputies.
The trooper who went to the medical facility where Dickerson was treated reported smelling alcohol on him and that he had bloodshot eyes. Dickerson was arrested on suspicion of DUI and later transported to Tacoma General Hospital. The next day, he was booked into the Pierce County Jail. His booking charges were changed to vehicular assault after the State Patrol learned of the victims’ injuries.
The Sheriff’s Office placed Dickerson on paid administrative leave at the time. Prosecutors filed charges Oct. 22. Days later, the Sheriff’s Office announced that Dickerson was retiring.
Dickerson joined the Sheriff’s Office in August 2000. He worked as a patrol deputy and a school-resource officer for 11 years before he was assigned to the Criminal Investigation Division as a narcotics investigator. He was promoted to detective in 2014 and later detective sergeant. He also spent a decade as a medic in the U.S. Army and the Washington Army National Guard.
After court adjourned, Hunton told The News Tribune she knew the amount of time Dickerson was ordered to serve was not her decision, so she had to accept it. Hunton said she had hoped Dickerson would say he was sorry.
“We didn’t get that,” Hunton said.
“I did feel he was regretful, I do,” Hunton added. “I do think that. I feel very sorry for his family. I know they’re as much a victim of this as we are. His wife looked at me, and I did mouth, ‘I’m sorry,’ to her because I know she’s suffering, too, and I feel bad about that. There’s no winners in this.”
‘In an instant, everything changed’
It was a normal and happy spring day for Hunton and her family before the wreck, she said in court. She spent the morning working in the yard. For lunch, Hunton and her daughter, son-in-law and grandchildren decided to go to Olive Garden.
Hunton recalled her son-in-law trying to put on music for the kids as they drove down the road just outside their home. Hunton said her daughter was smiling.
“It was a beautiful day, and everyone was happy,” Hunton said. “I was on the phone. I started talking about family things. Then in an instant, everything changed. We never saw the car coming. We didn’t even know what happened before we felt a massive impact.”
Their car was forced off the road, and it rolled onto its side. Hunton said the vehicle began to fill with smoke. She looked around and saw her family “trapped and terrified.” Hunton said she thought there was a fire, and she believed they might die.
Outside, Hunton heard her neighbors pounding on the vehicle. She said her son-in-law shouted for help, then slammed his shoulder against the windshield over and over until it broke open. The neighbor helped get Arciniega and her husband out while Hunton helped get her 8-year-old grandson to his father. Then Hunton said she climbed into the backseat and worked to free the other two children from their car seats.
“After handing my last grandchild out, I had nothing left,” Hunton said. “I collapsed to my knees, and I couldn’t get up. My son-in-law came back for me and dragged me out of the car, and Amber helped lay me on the ground.”
Hunton said that was when she realized she felt like she couldn’t breathe. The grandmother said she gasped for air.
“I later learned I had a puncture in my lungs,” Hunton said. “ It was the most terrifying physical sensation that I’ve ever experienced.”
In the hospital, Hunton said, the State Patrol informed her that the person who hit her family had been drunk, and that he was a police officer. She said learning that was shocking. Later, relatives who went to the collision scene told her that they’d seen deputies allow items to be removed from Dickerson’s vehicle.
“This was very concerning to us,” Hunton said.
Arciniega, who addressed the court after her mother, also spoke about the Sheriff’s Office’s response to the collision. She said there were efforts to keep the investigation within the agency.
Prosecutors wrote in charging documents that phone records showed Dickerson called another member of command staff before deputies arrived, who then texted the command duty officer that Dickerson had been involved in a “non-injury accident.”
“There were attempts to hide the truth, and, when I learned that, it broke my heart because it meant that the people I trusted were choosing to protect Chad instead of protecting my family and my children,” Arciniega said.
“I had to rely on the Washington State Patrol to uncover the truth,” she added.
Defense says there were ‘significant’ evidence issues
After Dickerson completes his jail sentence, the terms of his punishment include 12 months of community custody, during which time he is not allowed to consume alcohol or drugs without a valid prescription. He’s also not permitted to go to bars or casinos.
Ausserer said Dickerson obtained an alcohol assessment as soon as he was released from jail and completed the recommended treatment. Burton said Dickerson could file proof of that with the court to fulfill a community custody requirement.
Although Dickerson has retired, his felony conviction could lead to the revocation of his certification as a law enforcement officer. State law requires the Sheriff’s Office to notify the state’s Criminal Justice Training Commission when an officer is charged with a crime, and RCW 43.101.105 says the commission must revoke certification when an officer is convicted of a felony.
The felony conviction likely will have no effect on Dickerson’s retirement benefits. Adam Torgerson, a spokesperson for the state Department of Retirement Systems, told The News Tribune that the only crime that could affect a pension would be if someone caused themselves to benefit from their crime.
Prosecutors originally charged Dickerson with two counts of vehicular assault DUI for harming two people. Those charges were amended ahead of his plea hearing, dropping one count but adding Arciniega as a third victim. Prosecutors also added the obstruction charge, for which Burton imposed a sentence of three months to be served at the same time as his sentence for vehicular assault DUI, suspended for two years.
In a court filing explaining the amended charges, deputy prosecuting attorney Miriam Norman wrote that the resolution accounted for the defendant’s lack of criminal history and potential evidentiary issues that might arise at trial.
Ausserer said in court there were “significant” evidentiary issues in the case including the cause of the collision. He said there was some evidence that Dickerson’s vehicle was struck by the other vehicle.
There could be more than one proximate cause of the collision, Ausserer said. He said a jury could find the fact that Dickerson had alcohol in his system was a proximate cause of the collision.
“He understands he’s responsible for his own conduct,” Ausserer said. “He understands he was drinking while he was golfing with his friends, and he chose to drive. Now certainly, had my client chose to contest some of these things, he may have ended up with a better result, but he didn’t care about that. His goal was to resolve this, to take responsibility and accountability for his conduct.”
This story was originally published April 14, 2026 at 10:53 AM.
