EVERETT — A man already locked behind bars for dealing drugs and trying to outrun police is potentially facing an even longer stretch in prison now that prosecutors have charged him in connection with a car crash that seriously injured an Everett woman.
Johnothan Bagley was awaiting sentencing for a string of crimes last year when he crashed into Teri Cantor in the Lowell neighborhood. Toxicology tests showed that Bagley, 28, was high on methamphetamine at the time, Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Tobin Darrow wrote in charging papers.
The Everett man’s license was suspended and cops allegedly found meth and heroin in the borrowed Pontiac Grand AM that he was driving.
Bagley fell asleep in the back of a patrol car after he was arrested. He dozed off again at the police station. A police officer concluded that Bagley was under the influence of drugs. Blood tests later supported the officer’s opinion, Darrow wrote.
Bagley blamed the crash on Cantor, court papers said. He told police that “the other lady” crossed the center line.
Detectives concluded that Bagley was responsible for the crash, Darrow wrote.
Cantor suffered multiple broken bones, including two shattered heels. She was on her way to work when Bagley reportedly crossed the center line and slammed into her car. The impact shoved Cantor’s car back about 50 feet and crumpled the front end.
Cantor was in intensive care at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle for about five days. She needed surgeries to repair broken bones. She was still in a wheelchair more than a month after the crash. Her medical bills were hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Bagley is charged with vehicular assault for the Nov. 15, 2012, crash. He has numerous prior felony convictions. At the time of the crash, he was awaiting sentencing for assault, attempting to elude police and possessing a controlled substance with the intent to distribute.
He later was sentenced to 7 1/2 years in prison. If convicted of the new charge, he could face more time behind bars.
Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463; hefley@heraldnet.com.
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