WHITE CENTER, Wash. — A Puyallup man accused of striking and killing a pedestrian in White Center in April has been charged.
Isaiah Lewis Cooper, 37, was charged Tuesday with felony hit-and-run in the April 22 death of Thomas Joseph Garrett, 81, of Seattle.
Prosecutors said Cooper was seen on video driving his Jeep Compass in White Center on the night of crash without anyone in the passenger seat.
Garrett was crossing Southwest Roxbury Street and 15th Avenue Southwest at 10:09 p.m. when prosecutors said video shows Cooper’s Jeep strike Garrett. Garrett flies onto the Jeep’s hood, rolling off when the Jeep brakes.
The Jeep does not stop and continues eastbound.
Garrett was taken to Harborview Medical Center where he was pronounced dead.
Police identified Cooper based on surveillance footage and eyewitness reports.
Prosecutors said Cooper’s cellphone data placed him within 148 feet of the crash. Cooper was initially arrested May 16 during a traffic stop.
Cooper told police he left the Jeep at his father’s house in Port Orchard, according to charging documents. Cooper’s father told police that Cooper covered it with a tarp. Police seized the Jeep with the cover on it.
Cooper was released from King County Jail on May 20 after a judge didn’t find probable cause to charge him.
A King County judge approved a search warrant May 20 to uncover the vehicle, which revealed hood damage consistent with what detectives would expect from video footage of the crash.
Cooper was arrested again May 23 and booked in King County Jail.
Cooper has a prior conviction for reckless driving in 2020 and 10 other traffic-related convictions or citations, according to prosecutors.
