Man gets nearly 20 years for randomly shooting woman, crushing Army officer’s legs in Tacoma

TACOMA, Wash. — A Port Orchard man will spend nearly two decades in prison for shooting a stranger multiple times and ramming a car into an Army officer in Tacoma, crushing his legs.

In February 2022, Jeffrey Poland shot Lily Valdez — a single mother of two — four times as she started driving home from a concert.

He then drove a mile south, where he rammed into a parked car, pinning an Army officer against his own trunk.

The impact from the crash was so severe that doctors were forced to amputate one of the man’s legs.

Investigators say Poland was clearly drunk at the time.

He pleaded guilty last month to first-degree assault, DUI vehicular assault and second-degree assault.

He was sentenced to 19 years and 3 months in prison.

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