The Washington State Patrol is mourning the loss of 28-year-old Trooper Justin Schaffer, who was killed in the line of duty on Tuesday, March 24. The incident that claimed his life occurred on Interstate 5, outside of Chehalis during a police pursuit. Trooper Shaffer was laying tack strip in the road to stop the suspect when he was hit by the suspect’s vehicle.
The pursuit started when the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office was pursuing a 39-year-old suspect who had just stolen lighter fluid from Pacific Mini Mart in the town of Lacey. The clerk of the store and another customer followed the man to get a picture of his license plate when the man came at them with a stun gun. This happened on Monday.
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The clerk and customer were able to get away from the man. When he got in his truck and was leaving, he attempted to hit the clerk, who was able to get out of his way in time. The police were able to identify the suspect from surveillance and his custom license plate.
They then incorporated the help of other local law enforcement agencies.
On Tuesday, a Thurston County Sheriff’s Deputy spotted the truck and the suspect near exit 95 on Interstate 105. This lead to a high-speed chase that went southbound on the interstate. When the Washington State Patrol got involved, the vehicle driven by the suspect then hit the young Trooper.
Trooper Schaffer was taken to Providence Centralia Hospital. Once at the hospital, they pronounced him dead. As of Tuesday, the suspect was incarcerated.
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