WSP: Driver pushes trooper out of moving car after altercation on I-90

SEATTLE — A driver was arrested Wednesday morning after an altercation with a trooper, investigators said.

At about 1 a.m., a trooper stopped a car on I-90, just west of East Mercer Way.

The Washington State Patrol’s Rick Johnson said the driver was asked to step out of the car and do a sobriety test after the trooper noticed possible impairment.

“The field tests led Trooper Harms to develop probable cause to place the subject under arrest for suspected impairment,” Johnson said.

When Harms tried to arrest the driver, he resisted, and an altercation happened afterward. During the altercation, the driver struck the trooper, Johnson said.

The driver then got back in car with the trooper right next to him and put the car into drive.

The trooper was pushed out of the car by the driver as the car was going 25 to 30 mph, according to investigators.

Johnson said the trooper slid on his back for about 40 feet and the driver drove away from the scene.

According to WSP, another driver saw the incident and activated their hazard lights for Harms until he could get up. He then got in his patrol car to search for the driver but could not find him.

The trooper had minor injuries.

During the traffic stop, the driver gave Harms a Texas ID and a Seattle address as the place where he was coming from. The suspect car was also a rental.

Later in the morning, investigators continued to search for the driver and located his car at the Seattle address that was given.

Johnson said the address was connected to a person with an active Department of Corrections felony warrant, which allowed troopers to enter the home.

“Once inside this apartment, it was determined that the suspect from this incident was the same individual that had the felony warrant and was using a stolen identity from the individual in Texas,” Johnson said.

The suspect, whom troopers identified as Dontrel O. West, was arrested and booked into the King County Jail.

WSP is asking anyone who witnessed the incident to contact troopers at 425-401-7788.

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