LACEY, Wash. — A man was sentenced to prison Thursday following a DUI pursuit in January that injured two Thurston County deputies.
The suspect, who was not named in Thurston County Sheriff's Facebook post, pleaded guilty to second-degree assault, malicious mischief, attempting to elude, possession of a stolen vehicle and DUI earlier this month.
According to the Thurston County Sheriff, he will spend 84 months, or seven years, in prison. The suspect had no previous felony convictions before this incident.
The Thurston County deputies hospitalized after the chase have recovered from their injuries suffered in the Jan. 26 pursuit.
Authorities said a deputy tried to stop a black Ford truck for swerving between lanes on suspicion of DUI just before 1:30 a.m. When the deputy provided the plate details to dispatch, the results indicated it was registered to a different vehicle. The suspect fled northbound on Interstate 5 and the deputy chased after him.
Between exits 111 and 114, the suspect drove across the highway median and onto I-5 south. The Thurston County Sheriff and other deputies joined in the pursuit as the suspect fled to Lacey.
According to authorities, one deputy used a successful PIT maneuver to stop the driver. In response, the driver rammed another deputy and their recruit, sending both to the hospital in an ambulance. After the collision, deputies requested the help of the Washington State Patrol and King County helicopters, but they could not respond to the area.
Officials tried several PIT maneuvers throughout the pursuit. The suspect drove onto Capitol City Golf Course, but deputies lost track of him for a short time. He was found again driving along Rainier Road.
After two more PIT maneuvers and a tactical vehicle intervention, the suspect's vehicle was pushed onto a field. The driver sped up, smashed through a fence and landed back onto Old Highway 99. After the truck lost a tire, Sheriff Derek Sanders requested the next patrol deputy in a Ford F150 to ram the suspect again, hopefully putting the car out of service. Halfway through the city of Tenino, authorities said the suspect's vehicle transmission blew out. The driver surrendered with help from a police K9.
The suspect was arrested for drug DUI, two counts of first-degree assault of a law enforcement officer with a deadly weapon, multiple counts of first-degree malicious mischief, and attempting to elude police.
The Thurston County Sheriff's Office said the pursuit lasted for over half an hour.