Lance Melder was killed five months ago in a crash on Interstate 5. Pierce County prosecutors have now filed charges against a 37-year-old man.
Ryan Edward Grems was charged with failure to remain at accident resulting in death and theft of a motor vehicle for the March 30 fatal crash.
Grems is accused of crashing a 2000 Chevrolet Silverado into Melder's 2012 Ford Focus on southbound I-5 north of the Tacoma Mall area. Grems allegedly ditched the Silverado and carjacked a white GMC Acadia before driving off, charging documents show.
The 39-year-old Melder, originally from Temple, Texas, was stationed at Joint Base Lewis-McChord as a tanker and had been in the Army since 2006.
Charging details
Washington State Patrol troopers were dispatched to the crash. Melder died at the scene, prosecutors wrote.
Witnesses reported the Chevrolet was driving at a high rate of speed and swerving over the road prior to the crash, prosecutors wrote.
A WSP trooper was en route when he saw a vehicle matching the Acadia's description on the exit ramp to 56th Street. When the trooper contacted the Acadia, he saw it was abandoned. It also had blood on the interior of the driver's compartment.
Detectives learned the Silverado was sold to a man not identified as Grems in October 2022. Detectives later learned that the man sold the Silverado to Grems, prosecutors wrote. Blood samples from the Acadia and the Silverado's driver's side airbag were a match to Grems.
A witness told detectives on April 20, 2024 that he knew Grems was driving the Silverado on the night of the crash. Grems allegedly admitted that he was the driver and he was going to report the Silverado as stolen, prosecutors wrote.
Grems is not in custody, and a bench warrant was issued for his arrest on July 26.
Melder's wife, Alyssa Melder, told The News Tribune that she will not feel better until Grems is locked up and cannot be reckless again.
"My person's gone, and that person just gets to do whatever he's doing. He's probably thinking everything's fine while me and countless other people are trying to pick up the pieces," she said.
Lance and Alyssa Melder were married for 14 and a half years and had four children. Alyssa Melder said that her husband was considered a celebrity at their home and everyone looked up to him.
"There's times where it's hard. We celebrated his birthday and Fourth of July, and our birthdays are five days apart, so it's always a real big deal," she said. "I mean, it's hard, but I think overall, for the most part, we're OK, we're navigating."
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