A motorcyclist suffered a possible broken leg early Tuesday morning when he was struck by a law enforcement squad car that was pursuing a fleeing vehicle, according to authorities.
Officials from the Spokane County Sheriff’s Department did not identify the motorcyclist, who was injured at about 2:30 a.m. Tuesday. No other injuries were listed on car accident reports, but 28-year-old Levi M. Everitt, the driver of the fleeing vehicle, and his passenger, Jacob L. Gier, 26, were arrested on multiple charges.
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Authorities said a deputy at about 2:20 a.m. Tuesday attempted to pull over Everitt’s vehicle near Fifth Avenue and Park Road in Spokane Valley. But Everitt sped off in an “aggressive, reckless determined attempt to avoid capture,” according to car accident reports from the sheriff’s department.
The pursuit continued as Everitt drove the wrong way down one street and even rammed a squad car, authorities said. Everitt’s tires were flattened though the use of a law enforcement spike strips, but he continued “to demonstrate his determination to flee at any cost, despite sparks flying up from the metal of wheels grinding on the roadway,” deputies wrote in a release.
As law enforcement officials were preparing to use a PIT maneuver to disable Everitt’s vehicle, a deputy crashed into a motorcyclist who “failed to clear the intersection as the emergency vehicles approached,” authorities said. The motorcyclist was hospitalized with a suspected broken leg, car accident reports state.
Everitt and Gier were taken into custody soon after. Gier told investigators that he was afraid for his life during the pursuit and asked Everitt to pull over so he could get out, but Everitt refused, according to court documents.
Gier was booked on an outstanding warrant and a new charge of heroin possession. Everitt was arrested on charges of second-degree assault, vehicular assault, reckless driving, attempting to elude a police vehicle, unlawful imprisonment and driving while suspended.
The motorcyclist also could face criminal charges, deputies said. He allegedly showed signs of impairment and he was carrying a substance believed to be methamphetamine, car accident reports state.
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