It was a wild 24 hours for the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office on Friday after two police chases resulted in three deputies getting hurt on the job by the suspects they were chasing; two of whom were sent to the hospital.
Around 1:27 a.m., a drug DUI suspect led deputies on a wild chase for more than half an hour.
Sheriff Derek Sanders says the driver of a 2005 F350 started to elude his deputies on Marin Way E in Lacey. He says the suspect headed north and crossed the median on I-5 NB between exits 111 and 114 to turn around and go south.
From there, the suspect led Sheriff Sanders and other deputies in a chase. Sheriff Sanders says the suspect rammed his car into a patrol car with a deputy and recruit inside; both we taken to a nearby hospital.
Right after he hit the patrol car, he fled toward the Capitol City Golf Club in Olympia where he drove on the fairway and across the 6th green.
“He’s in there doing his doughnuts and having fun at the expense of the golf course,” Sheriff Sanders said.
He says his deputies didn’t follow him onto the course but created a perimeter. From there they followed him toward Waldrick Road and Old Highway 99.
He says the driver of the F350 went through a field and eventually put on the gas to plow through a fence to get back on the highway. He says the truck lost a tire in the process.
His deputies were able to catch the guy in Tenino without incident; however, he says not only will they lose two deputies for a few weeks, but they also lost four vehicles in this chase.
“We don’t have a lot of cars sitting around and we don’t have a lot of staff sitting around,” Sheriff Sanders said.
The second chase involving Thurston County happened Friday afternoon after a woman robbed someone in Olympia and stole a person’s car.
Sheriff’s deputies were able to locate the vehicle on Johnson Point Road and Sleater Kinney Road. Sheriff Sanders says with the help of Lacey Police, they were able to use two spike strips to stop the car.
The woman fled the scene on foot and was captured pretty quickly. But as deputies were taking her to a patrol car, a deputy was kicked.
“And then she assaulted one of my deputies by kicking him in the groin,” Sheriff Sanders said.
Sheriff Sanders has been vocal about law enforcement being able to pursue suspects in vehicle chases. He says while it was a chaotic day, he is happy with how his deputies have handled each situation as he believes police being able to pursue can save lives.
“My concern is that when we just say, ‘Nope, not my problem.’ Then we just wait for the fatality ten minutes later, that’s a concern for me,” Sheriff Sanders said.
Both suspects are in custody. The DUI suspect faces a slew of charges from assault with a deadly weapon to drug DUI. His bail has been set at $150,000.
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