South Sound News

Search for driver who hit cyclist, sped off

The search is on for the driver who hit a cyclist in the South Sound then took off.

"When they hit me I thought I was dead, I thought that was it,” said Jason Haley.

Fear raced through Haley's mind the moment he was hit by a car.

"I screamed without even thinking, it just came out of me,” he said.

Haley was riding to work around 5:30 a.m. May 22. He had on his helmet and his safety lights were flashing.

Suddenly, he heard a crash and realized he'd been hit.

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"The sound is what really scared me and then once I kind of got my wits about me and saw that I was still alive and OK, I was angry and upset and a little emotional,” said Haley.

Haley said the car that hit him was captured by a camera at Canyon Coffee on 72nd Street East moments before the crash. He describes it as an older model red four-door sedan.

His body took the brunt of the blow.

"My entire left side, from my shoulder down to my forearm,” said Haley.

To make it worse, Haley's father was killed by a hit and-run driver last July in California. The suspect is also still on the run.

"For that split second, I thought I knew what it felt like for him when he was struck by that vehicle and he died in the street,” said Haley.

Pierce County Sheriff's Department detectives said the driver should have stopped.

"If they would've just stuck around at the scene they probably wouldn't be in trouble, but when you do run and you don't know if somebody's hurt or not, that's what gets you in trouble,” said Detective Ed Troyer.

The car hit Haley so hard the side mirror broke off.

"It does have some scuff marks which might be from part of my bike,” said Haley.

Haley’s keeping the mirror as evidence. He hopes the driver does the right thing and turns themselves in.

"How could someone do what they just did and then just drive off as if nothing just happened?" said Haley.

The car is described as a red four door sedan. It will be missing its passenger side mirror.

If you see the car or have information about the crash, call the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department.