The driver involved in a North Spokane high-speed chase, which sent seven police officers and three civilians to the hospital last week, appeared in court for the first time Monday.
Keiana Henry, 21, was arrested Monday in connection with vehicular assault, four counts of attempt to elude police pursuit and an outstanding felony warrant.
According to court documents, Henry admitted to being under the influence of methamphetamine and fentanyl at the time of the collision. The documents state that she claimed to have had driven her boyfriend and his friend in her car to a gas station to purchase fentanyl powder before ingesting some and continuing to drive.
Around 1 p.m. Friday, Spokane Police noticed Henry's black Audi, which matched the description of one involved in a recent drive-by shooting, according to court documents. The police attempted to initiate a traffic stop after which Henry fled, according to the documents.
Driving faster than 50 mph in a residential area, Henry collided with an armored SWAT vehicle at the intersection of Carlisle Avenue and Oak Street.
The SWAT vehicle had finished a response to another incident that day and was called to the area to be on standby to assist if Henry's car was stopped and the situation became more dangerous, department spokeswoman Julie Humphreys said. It was not pursuing the suspect car at the time and is not a vehicle used in police pursuits, she added.
The SWAT vehicle was hit when the suspect's car drove through the intersection at over 50 mph , injuring the five officers inside and making it an "unintentional collision," Humphreys said.
The doors to the SWAT vehicle swung open in the crash, flinging one officer to the ground where he hit his head, according to court documents.
After this collision, the pursuing police vehicle hit the rear of Henry's car, apparently spinning it 180 degrees as seen in video footage of the crash.
Two officers in the police car were injured, along with a K9 unit dog. All three occupants of Henry's car were injured according to the documents.
Henry along with her two passengers were apprehended on site according to the documents. Henry was reportedly crying and yelling, and worried about potential drug withdrawals that she could be facing.
After receiving treatment for her injuries at Deaconess Hospital, Henry was booked into Spokane County Jail on suspicion of vehicular assault, attempting to elude a police vehicle and on an outstanding felony warrant, according to documents.
Her passengers, after treatment at the hospital, were not booked into jail related to the collision, according to a news release.
All officers injured were hospitalized, and are currently "resting and recovering," according to the release. Court documents state that the officer who fell out of the SWAT vehicle and hit his head suffered a broken vertebra, abrasions and a head laceration that required staples. The injured police dog was taken to a local vet.
In Henry's first appearance in court Monday, the prosecuting attorney said Henry is an Idaho resident and has had a warrant out for her arrest since August 2023. It was determined that she would be held on a $100,000 bond due to her presenting a danger to the community.
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