A 32-year-old man charged Monday with vehicular homicide and other offenses for a car crash in Puyallup over the weekend was driving with a suspended license, according to charging documents.
One man was killed in the crash, and a woman suffered two spinal fractures, according to the declaration for determination of probable cause. The man who died has not been publicly identified.
Prosecutors in Pierce County Superior Court charged Donald Michael Oglesby II with vehicular homicide, DUI vehicular assault and second-degree driving with a suspended license.
Pleas of not guilty were entered on Oglesby's behalf at arraignment Monday afternoon. Court Commissioner Philip Thornton set bail at $300,000, and he ordered the defendant to install an ignition-interlock device on any vehicle he drives if he is released.
It is the third DUI-related offense the defendant has been charged with in five years, according to the probable cause document. Records state he was charged with DUI in Seattle in 2018, and he caught another DUI charge in 2021 that was later amended to reckless driving.
The fatal collision happened in the early hours of Sunday morning near the 2300 block of South Meridian Avenue, about a mile south of MultiCare Good Samaritan Hospital. Witness statements and evidence at the scene indicated that the driver of a Buick stopped his car in the road after hitting a shopping cart and other debris, prosecutors wrote in charging documents. The driver was clearing debris or examining his car for damage when he was allegedly struck by Oglesby.
Oglesby allegedly told Puyallup Police Department officers that he was driving home from the Big Whisky Saloon when the crash occurred. He also allegedly told them that he used cannabis and drank at a friend's house earlier in the day. Police noted that Oglesby smelled of marijuana and that his eyes were bloodshot and glassy.
It's unclear how fast the defendant was driving. Police said the speed limit in that area is 35 mph.
Charging documents gave this account:
Puyallup police were dispatched at 2:09 a.m. for a two-car collision. An officer found a 2012 BMW in the southbound lanes with extreme front-end damage with blood on a shattered portion of its windshield. About 10 feet in front of the car was a 2021 Buick with major damage to its rear and passenger side.
The BMW driver, identified as Oglesby, was standing on the sidewalk while a woman sat crying in the passenger seat of the Buick, according to the probable cause document. A man was lying between the two vehicles who did not appear to be breathing, and a mangled shopping cart was near him.
In a news release, Puyallup police said Oglesby was performing CPR on the man when officers arrived. His efforts were unsuccessful, and the victim was pronounced dead at the scene.
Police spoke with Oglesby, who allegedly said he never saw the vehicle in front of him. The defendant said it was parked in the roadway with no flashers on when he struck the car. He then got out and saw a man down in the road. A police sergeant noted that the Buick's lights were on when he arrived, but he was not the first law enforcement officer on the scene.
Investigators believe that the blood found on Oglesby's windshield indicates that the victim was hit by the defendant, and the victim was thrown onto the windshield. Oglesby then allegedly continued forward and rear-ended the Buick.
