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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Sirens & Gavels

Driver jailed for allegedly fighting, threatening state troopers

A 19-year-old man was jailed Wednesday for allegedly fighting with state troopers and threatening to kill them and their families after a traffic stop in Spokane Valley.

Rostislav N. Rubel has received 11 traffic citations since January, but that didn't stop him from driving 87 mph past a trooper's car in a 60 mph zone on Interstate 90, according to a report from the Washington State Patrol. Troopers later learned his car had reportedly sped between lanes farther back on I-90, striking the mirror of another vehicle.

Rubel was driving east on the freeway in a green sedan with a passenger who was also under 21, and the trooper pulled him over between North Argonne Road and North Evergreen Road, the report says. Two other troopers reported smelling alcohol on Rubel's breath, and that his eyes were bloodshot, face flushed and speech slurred. They reported finding a bottle of Fireball in the car and a bag of marijuana in the glove box.

Rubel declined to perform sobriety tests and got into an "altercation" with the troopers, the report says. He allegedly told them, "I'll cut your head off," and, "I'm the person that's going to kill you and your family."

In the back of a patrol car, he repeatedly beat his head against a window and had to have his legs bound, the report says. He was taken to Deaconess Hospital for a medical check and to get blood samples.

"Rubel was aggressive and disruptive in the ER until he fell asleep," the report says.

Rubel, who has no criminal history in Washington, is being held in the Spokane County Jail on a $2,000 bond. He faces charges of DUI, hit-and-run, intimidating and obstructing public servants, resisting arrest, third-degree assault, reckless driving and driving with a suspended license.



Chad Sokol
Chad Sokol is a general assignment reporter for the City Desk. He joined The Spokesman-Review in 2015 as an intern in the Olympia bureau covering state government. After a stint of freelancing, he joined the staff in 2016. His focuses include higher education, jails and prisons, white nationalism and anti-government extremism.

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