LYNNWOOD — Jung Moon, 80, was on his daily walk through a neighborhood north of Lynnwood when a dual-wheeled pickup truck struck and dragged him, according to court papers.
Michael James Tallman, 63, of Lynnwood, was charged Dec. 17 in Snohomish County Superior Court with vehicular homicide and hit-and-run.
A little before 8:30 a.m. on Dec. 1, a witness reported seeing a blue Chevrolet pickup swerve over the line and onto the road’s shoulder, hit Moon, then swerve back onto the road. The driver kept going, leaving Moon bleeding and unconscious, deputy prosecutor Tobin Darrow wrote.
Moon was dead by the time medics arrived. Snohomish County sheriff’s deputies noticed pieces of dark plastic at the scene. A detective specializing in collision reconstruction determined a vehicle with dual wheels likely caused the tire marks observed on the road.
A sheriff’s lieutenant was on his way when he saw a pickup matching the description on 164th Street Southwest. The truck was swerving and hit a curb when the driver pulled to a stop. The lieutenant noted the truck was dented in the middle of the hood and that the dark plastic bug deflector in the grill had been broken.
Tallman told the lieutenant he was taking someone else’s truck to the mechanic’s shop when “unfortunate events” happened along the way. He reportedly said the damage was old.
The truck’s owner, however, told deputies there was no damage to the hood or grill when he asked Tallman to take the truck to the mechanic.
The lieutenant reported that Tallman moved slowly and stared listlessly during their encounter. He told the officer that he smoked marijuana daily, according to charging papers.
The lieutenant asked Tallman if he knew he hit a pedestrian.
“Wow, that guy must have been upset,” Tallman reportedly replied, and laughed.
Then he reportedly claimed he didn’t hit anyone and that the deputies must have stopped the wrong blue Chevrolet pickup.
Charging papers noted Tallman had a DUI in 1990. He was in custody at the Snohomish County Jail on Friday, with bail set at $250,000.
Zachariah Bryan: 425-339-3431; zbryan@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @zachariahtb.
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