Trooper Justin Schaffer Killed, William Thompson Arrested Following Police Chase Crash on 5 Freeway [Chehalis, WA]

Trooper Justin Schaffer Dead, William Thompson Detained Following Police Pursuit Accident on 5 Freeway Near Rice Road

 
CHEHALIS, WA (March 26, 2020)—A police pursuit on the 5 Freeway near Rice Road turned fatal Tuesday afternoon, claiming a Washington State Patrol Trooper’s life.
 
Justin R. Schaffer died at Providence Centralia Hospital, following the 4 p.m. crash. According to reports, he leaves behind a wife and his parents.
 
Per Trooper Will Finn, the incident unfolded when authorities spotted a truck on the 5 Freeway near Maytown that they believed was linked to Monday’s theft incident.
 
Authorities say they had been looking for a 39-year-old theft and assault suspect accused in stealing lighter fluid from Pacific Mini Mart around 2:45 p.m. that day.
 
As soon as officers identified the truck, a chase ensued, leading officers trailing behind William David Thompson‘s vehicle. The high-speed pursuit on the 5 South Freeway continued into Lewis County before resulting in the unfortunate incident with Schaffer.
 
Schaffer, at the time of the chase, was deploying spike strips when Thompson’s truck struck him.
 
Schaffer, a certified K-9 handler to his partner “Frankie”, died not long after.
 
As for Thompson, police arrested him and booked him into the Lewis County Jail for investigation of vehicular homicide and attempting to elude police.

Our law firm would like to take this moment to express its deepest condolences to their friends and family of Justin R. Schaffer.

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