Woman hurt in crash also was shot

By CATHY LOGG

Herald Writer

LYNNWOOD — A Lynnwood woman who crashed her car after allegedly being shot and pursued at high speed by her estranged husband was on life support in a Seattle hospital Tuesday.

Her husband was in jail on suspicion of a variety of charges, including allegedly driving a stolen car.

Lynnwood police arrived less than two minutes after the woman’s car crashed into a tree and a power pole about midnight Monday, and found the 31-year-old Kent man at the scene, police spokeswoman Trudy Dana said.

The crash occurred in the area of 196th Street SW and Highway 99.

The woman, 32, was ejected from the car and suffered facial injuries. She had been shot in the right shoulder prior to the crash, Dana said. She was transported to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, where she was listed in serious condition Tuesday night.

Investigators, who have not been able to interview the woman, suspect that the couple were engaged in a verbal dispute and she was shot during that argument, Dana said.

"We’re not completely certain where the assault happened," but investigators believe it was in the area, she said.

The woman fled the area where the dispute occurred, and shortly before the crash witnesses reported two vehicles traveling at high speed eastbound on 196th, Dana said.

"We believe he was chasing her," Dana said.

She could not say whether the man and woman were together prior to the shooting, or whether the woman was in her car at the time she was shot.

The man was booked into the Lynnwood jail on investigation of domestic violence assault, possession of a stolen vehicle, being a felon in possession of a firearm and violation of a court-issued protection order, Dana said. He was to be transferred Tuesday to the Snohomish County Jail in Everett.

He had a gun in his possession at the scene, and the vehicle he was driving had been reported stolen several days ago in Enumclaw, police said.

The couple has a history of domestic violence, Dana said.