EVERETT — Jerry Bogart is no stranger to the inside of a prison cell. He’s been in and out of the joint for years, and now he’s facing his longest stretch.
A jury earlier this month convicted Bogart of a trio of crimes stemming from a drug deal that went sideways last year. Bogart, 41, is facing up to three decades in prison.
Prosecutors alleged that Bogart punched a man in the face and shot at him for good measure. Bogart then led police on a slow-speed chase on I-5 before a Snohomish County sheriff’s deputy was able to ram Bogart’s 1978 Chevy Nova into submission.
Over the years police have chased Bogart across miles of Snohomish County roads. He once tried to outrun the cops behind the wheel of a 23-foot stolen motor home. He struck and killed a dog and narrowly missed hitting police officers in another pursuit.
Bogart was released from prison about a year before the assault. He had served a three-year stretch for some burglaries and trying to outrun the cops from Lake Stevens to north Everett.
Last year’s assault victim told police he arranged to meet Bogart to buy $150 worth of methamphetamine. Bogart tossed a cigarette pack into the open window of the man’s car. The customer handed over some cash. That’s when Bogart punched the man in the face and called him a rat.
The man admitted to detectives that he struck Bogart’s car as he was driving away because he was mad about getting sucker-punched.
Bogart pulled a gun from his pocket and shot at the other man, according to charging papers. One of the bullets hit the fleeing car.
Bogart called the victim after the gunfire. Bogart left a message, asking the man if was OK and requesting a call back. The defendant must have thought he hung up the phone, but his conversation with a third party was recorded in the message.
Bogart said, he was “gonna kill him,” and “I just tried to kill him,” according to a search warrant.
The man told police that the cigarette pack contained what appeared to be drugs but turned out to be salt.
Police issued a bulletin seeking Bogart’s arrest. A few hours later a Tulalip Tribal Police officer spotted Bogart’s Nova northbound on the freeway near Marysville. Other officers converged on the freeway, shutting it down as Bogart continued north. Eventually, a Snohomish County sheriff’s deputy struck the side of Bogart’s car to disable it. The Nova spun out and Bogart was taken into custody.
Bogart claimed his actions were self-defense.
A jury rejected Bogart’s claims and convicted him of first-degree assault with a firearm and two counts of unlawful gun possession.
This could be a second strike for Bogart. He has a second-degree assault conviction from 2004. He swung a wooden ax handle at a man who said he was trying to stop Bogart from stealing some speakers. Bogart was chased off after the man pulled a gun and fired into the ground.
Before that, Bogart spent time in prison for a 1999 crime spree. He’d led police on a high-speed chase while driving a $50,000 motor home that was stolen out of Skagit County.
Bogart got the motor home up to 95 mph. An accomplice broke out a rear window and threw stuff at pursuing police cars. Bogart tried to ram a deputy’s patrol car while yelling obscenities at cops. He eventually jumped from the moving RV and forced his way into a Granite Falls house. The homeowner knocked Bogart down and held him there until police arrived.
Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463; hefley@heraldnet.com.
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