Pierce County teen arrested after 100 mph chase, nearly hitting deputy
A 17-year-old boy has been arrested after allegedly trying to run over two Pierce County sheriff’s deputies with his car during a pursuit.
The boy was booked into Pierce County Jail at 2:33 p.m. on Monday, July 6, jail records say. He is facing one charge of first-degree assault and one charge of second-degree taking a motor vehicle without permission. He was later sent to Remann Hall.
According to court documents, Washington State Patrol was pursuing a white Lexus driving recklessly with no lights on southbound Interstate 5 near the 5600 block at about 1:44 a.m. on July 6.
The Lexus took the State Route 512 exit, and two Pierce County deputies positioned themselves between the I-5 lanes and the Pacific Avenue on-ramp, documents say. One deputy stayed in the car and turned the emergency lights off, but left the headlights and tail lights on. Another deputy stepped out of the car and pulled out stop sticks to put an end to the pursuit.
The boy saw the police officers, documents say, and drove over the fog-line on the shoulder and aimed at the car and deputy. The deputy moved out of the way, closer to the Pacific Avene exit, and the boy drove at about 100 miles per hour farther into the on-ramp, aiming towards the deputy.
He then lost control, documents say, came within 10 yards of the deputy and patrol vehicle, then hit a nearby light pole and continued on State Route 512.
“I was in fear for my life,” deputy William Willoughby wrote in a police report included with charging documents.
The dust cloud from his collision with the light pole made WSP troopers think he had crashed, which caused them to stop, documents say. Police later tried to find the car but stopped after they reached the Meridian exit of State Route 512.
Deputies later found the abandoned Lexus in the 2000 block of 112th Street East near Parkland, documents say.
The boy called police later that day at 12:26 p.m., documents say, and confessed he was involved in a chase earlier that morning and wanted to turn himself in.
Deputies arrived at a Parkland auto shop, documents say, where they found the boy, his father and a family friend who owned the shop.
“I asked [the boy] what was going on and he told me he made a mistake,” deputy Joseph Mola wrote in documents. “[He] stated he was celebrating a recent Soccer World Cup win and let his ego get the best of him.”
The father and family friend told deputies the boy stole the car from the shop, and they were arranging to get the Lexus inspected by WSP and have a title issued for it before giving it to him.
They told deputies the boy took the Lexus prematurely to go to a car meet-up after midnight, documents say.
