A Washington State Patrol trooper was shot and seriously injured during a traffic stop in Kent on Friday night, the patrol said.
Trooper Rick Johnson, a Patrol spokesperson, said the trooper was shot during a stop of a suspected drunken driver, according to a posting on the social media platform X.
Johnson said the trooper tried to make a traffic stop in Kent shortly before midnight when the vehicle fled, with the trooper giving chase. The pursuit ended when the suspect vehicle crashed into another car near an apartment complex in the 600 block of West James Place.
The driver apparently exited his vehicle and fired several shots, striking the trooper, whose identity has not been released. The trooper did not return fire, the Patrol said.
The wounded trooper was treated at the scene and taken to Harborview Medical Center, where Patrol spokesperson Chris Loftis said he was listed Saturday in serious condition with non-life-threatening injuries.
A suspect was apprehended and booked into the King County Jail.
