SNOHOMISH — U.S. 2 has reopened east of Snohomish after a police chase that ended in a crash closed both directions of the highway, authorities said.
Around 6 a.m., sheriff’s deputies responded to a car theft report in the 12000 block of 316th Avenue SE, according to the sheriff’s office. They found the stolen car and initiated a pursuit on westbound U.S. 2.
Deputies deployed spike strips, forcing the car to crash in the 14200 block of U.S. 2, the sheriff’s office reported.
Three deputies suffered minor injuries in a crash between their patrol cars, according to the sheriff’s office. The driver of the stolen car, a Seattle man, was taken to the hospital with minor injuries. He was expected to be booked into the Snohomish County Jail for investigation of second-degree assault, eluding police and unlawful firearm possession. A passenger in the car was also taken to a hospital with minor injuries but was later released.
The crash closed U.S. 2 from Roosevelt Road to Westwick Road. After over five hours, the highway reopened around 11:50 a.m.
A state Department of Transportation traffic map showed U.S. 2 traffic backed up in both directions in the morning. Traffic on side roads piled up, as well.
Three police pursuits last month ended with the suspect dead.
On Sept. 15, sheriff’s deputies used a PIT maneuver to stop Payton Michaels, 19, on Highway 9 after he was accused of killing his mother. Michaels was thrown from his car and died.
A week later, Elicio Paco Sanorico Bocanegra, 18, shot and killed himself on I-5 in Everett after killing Kevin Rodriguez Arcinas and injuring a woman, according to police.
And on Sunday, a fleeing suspect crashed into another car near Rainier Avenue and 19th Street and died, police said.
Police pursuit policy has been a hot topic of discussion in Olympia the past several years.
In 2021, state lawmakers limited when officers could initiate pursuits because of fears over danger to innocent bystanders caught in a high-speed chase. The legislation only allowed pursuits when police had probable cause for a violent offense, a sex offense, domestic violence-related offenses, driving under the influence of alcohol or trying to escape arrest.
But law enforcement leaders and Republican officials said this change made suspected criminals brazen, thinking they could flee police without consequences.
In light of these concerns, state Democrats agreed to amend the law to a “reasonable suspicion” standard, a lower bar than probable cause. Legislators further changed state law earlier this year when they approved Initiative 2113 to give police further leeway in pursuits. Under the initiative, officers can pursue if they have reasonable suspicion a person has violated the law.
Jake Goldstein-Street: 425-339-3439; jake.goldstein-street@heraldnet.com; X: @GoldsteinStreet.
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