Moses Lake man jailed after police chase
CHERYL SCHWEIZER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 4 years, 2 months AGO
Senior Reporter Cheryl Schweizer is a journalist with more than 30 years of experience serving small communities in the Pacific Northwest. She began her post-high-school education at Treasure Valley Community College and enerned her journalism degree at Oregon State University. After working for multiple publications, she has settled down at the Columbia Basin Herald and has been a staple of the newsroom for more than a decade. Schweizer’s dedication to her communities and profession has earned her the nickname “The Baroness of Bylines.” She covers a variety of beats including health, business and various municipalities. | February 11, 2021 1:00 AM
A Moses Lake man was booked into the Grant County Jail, after he and two passengers led Grant County Sheriff’s deputies on a chase in a vehicle early Tuesday morning.
The chase ended when the driver crashed his truck near O’Sullivan Reservoir at Potholes State Park, 6762 Highway 262 East, in Othello.
Christopher Howard, 46, the driver, was booked Tuesday night in the Grant County Jail for investigation of second-degree burglary and eluding law enforcement officers. The passengers were not charged as of Wednesday morning.
Howard and his passengers were attempting to flee, after they allegedly were seen loading tires in the truck at about 3 a.m. Tuesday at Commercial Tire, 12878 N. Frontage Road East. Deputies were patrolling due to reports of burglaries in the area, according to a Grant County Sheriff’s Office release.
The pickup and its occupants took off, leading deputies on a chase that topped 90 mph and ended near O’Sullivan Reservoir. As they tried to flee, the truck’s occupants threw objects out the back in an attempt to disable pursuing patrol cars, the press release said.
The pickup crashed at state Route 262 and Road M Southeast at the T intersection, the press release said. Howard was extricated from the truck.
Howard was treated at Samaritan Healthcare. The passengers in the truck, Andrew Palmen, 26, and Rikki Garcia-Lalk, 26, both of Moses Lake, were treated and released from Samaritan.
MORE CRIME STORIES
ARTICLES BY CHERYL SCHWEIZER
Grant PUD commissioners approve 20-year solar power production contract
EPHRATA — A solar power project that received a construction permit in 2020 is projected to be producing electricity by late 2027. Grant County Public Utility District commissioners approved a power purchasing agreement with Quincy Solar on April 8.
One road project completed in Quincy
QUINCY — It’s still early in the spring, but one transportation project in Quincy was completed last week. A bridge at the intersection of M Street Northeast and Road O Northwest reopened Friday. The bridge was widened to accommodate traffic turning onto or from Road O Northwest and the wooden railing was replaced with a metal guardrail. The bridge was closed while construction was underway. Quincy Administrator Pat Haley said in an earlier interview that typically the bridge railing was damaged about twice a year. Widening the bridge should better accommodate large vehicles turning at that intersection, he said.
Decision delayed on condemnation proceedings along proposed power line route
EPHRATA — Grant County Public Utility District commissioners will delay a decision on beginning condemnation proceedings for property along the route of a projected power line between Wanapum Dam and Quincy for six weeks. Commissioners voted to table a resolution that would’ve started the condemnation proceedings at the April 8 meeting, following testimony from residents along the proposed route.