Police chase in Yelm ends with SUV crashing into Lacey home

LACEY, Wash. — A suspect led police on a high-speed chase that topped 120 miles per hour in Thurston County.

It ended with that suspect crashing into the bedroom of a home in Lacey where a man was sleeping inside. He said the force of the crash knocked him out of bed.

“Speeds were ranging anywhere from 80 to 125 miles per hour,” said Sgt Joel Turner with the Yelm Police Department.

The suspect lost control on the corner at Yelm Ave and Ruddell Road.

“Heard a loud bang then heard sirens,” said Kevin Jonely, a next door neighbor. He said he felt the house shake and at first thought his home was hit.

But it was the house next door.

Yelm police say the suspect was driving a stolen black SUV. Around 2 a.m. Thursday, an officer pulled the suspect over for a traffic stop because the car had no plates.

But the suspect took off, then turned off his headlights.

“It’s very dangerous for the suspect and for people around,” Turner said.

At the corner, which has a posted speed limit of 25 mph, police say the suspect lost control. He first hit a large boulder, smashing it into pieces.

“The rock in his front yard used to be one big, four-foot tall boulder sitting by the sidewalk to kind of block people - because this happened before to his house,” Jonely said.

The black SUV then hit a parked red Jeep, flipping it upside down. And the SUV kept going.

“The suspect vehicle went airborne and actually landed on top of a house. And then rolled off the house and landed wheels down,” Turner said.

Incredibly, the man who was knocked out of bed in the destroyed bedroom was not hurt.

The suspect had to be cut out of the SUV and was taken to the hospital.

Police say the suspect also had two felony warrants out of King County - both for possession of a stolen vehicle.

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