EVERETT — It was not your everyday weapon.
An Everett woman was arrested Tuesday night for investigation of first-degree assault after allegedly spraying a police officer with a fire extinguisher and then smacking him on the side of the head with it.
The officer was investigating a break-in after a silent alarm picked up the sound of breaking glass at an E. Casino Road building in south Everett, according to court papers.
The officer was taken to Providence Regional Medical Center Everett for an evaluation but was able to return to finish his shift, police Sgt. Maryjane Hacker said Wednesday. He suffered a large bruise.
“Realistically, anything can be used as a weapon,” Hacker said. “It was a weapon of opportunity.”
Officers responded to the alarm around 11:45 p.m.
Soon after, the officer tried to ask questions of the 28-year-old Everett woman in the parking lot where the break-in occurred.
She reportedly started walking away and refused to stop.
When the officer grabbed her arm, the woman allegedly sprayed him in the face, causing fire retardant foam to get in his mouth.
In court Wednesday, Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Travis Johnson rejected a defense argument that the allegation should have been considered a lesser degree of assault.
Even though the officer was not seriously hurt, there was the potential for grave injury, he said.
The deputy prosecutor noted that the suspect is 5-foot-10 and weighs 270 pounds, and she’s accused of swinging a three-pound object at the officer.
“This is clearly a first-degree assault,” he said.
A judge set bail at $50,000.
Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446; stevick@heraldnet.com.
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