Liberty Lake police seek chase suspect

Thu., Dec. 5, 2013

By Nina Culver nculver47@gmail.com

Safety emphasis patrol

The Liberty Lake Police Department is launching a pedestrian safety emphasis patrol after four accidents sent pedestrians to the hospital in the last two weeks.

“That’s unusual for us,” said Police Chief Brian Asmus.

Police will be on the lookout for drivers not yielding to pedestrians in crosswalks. Drivers can receive a $124 ticket for the infraction.

All the injured pedestrians were hit by cars while crossing the road in the dark. All were wearing dark clothing and one person was not in a marked crosswalk, Asmus said. Three of the accidents were on poorly lit sections of Appleway Avenue. The most recent occurred early Monday morning when a man got off an STA bus and crossed Appleway in the middle of the block, Asmus said.

The city plans to install flashing pedestrian crossing lights at Country Vista Drive and Mission Avenue, which is a problem intersection, Asmus said. Discussions are underway about adding street lighting on Appleway, he said.

The Liberty Lake Police Department is searching for Jonathan K. Locke after a car chase the evening of Nov. 27.

An officer tried to pull over Locke’s truck because his license is suspended, said Police Chief Brian Asmus. The chase hit 60 mph in 25 mph zones before police say Locke jumped from the still moving truck and ran away.

A K-9 unit tracked the driver through several backyards on Ormond Road before losing the trail. The passenger in Locke’s truck remained at the scene and said he had repeatedly asked Locke to stop the truck and let him out. Police are asking for charges of attempting to elude a police vehicle, second-degree kidnapping, criminal trespassing, reckless endangerment and third-degree driving with a suspended license against Locke.

“That’s one of the reasons we’re doing the kidnapping (charge), because he said stop the car and let me out,” Asmus said.

The incident was not the only car chase involving police recently. The Post Falls Police Department called at 10:30 p.m. on Nov. 25 to alert officers of a chase heading into Washington. A Liberty Lake officer joined the pursuit just before Han T. Oo jumped the curb on Country Vista Drive and hit a street sign, Asmus said. Oo, 23, was charged with felony eluding and reckless driving. He also received citations for speeding, failure to provide proof of liability insurance, no valid operator’s license with identification and failure to stop at a stop sign.

On Monday, a woman used the Find My iPhone app to locate the phone she lost the day before on Mount Spokane. An officer knocked on the door of a home near Country Vista Drive and Swing Street and spoke to a teenager who said he had found the phone and was trying to locate the owner, Asmus said. However, all the woman’s contacts and photos had been deleted from the phone.

Although police were suspicious of the teen’s story, no charges have been filed, Asmus said. “It’s hard to prove intent,” he said.

Other events from Nov. 25-Dec. 2.

Nov. 25: Allsport reported the theft of a 2014 Polaris Razer 900 XP on display at the business. Video surveillance footage from the business is being reviewed.

Nov. 27: A resident in the 22000 block of East County Vista Drive reported being the victim of a scam. The person was notified that they had won a grant and was told to wire money in order to collect the grant. The money was sent and an additional call was received asking for more money to be wired. That money was sent as well, but no grant materialized.

Friday: An officer assisted the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office with a domestic violence call in the 3600 block of North Kenney Road.

A store in the 1500 block of North Liberty Lake Road reported the theft of a bottle of alcohol.

Arrests: Police made nine arrests for driving with a suspended license, one for driving under the influence and one on a warrant.

Citations: Officers handed out two citations for expired vehicle registration and four for speeding. An additional citation was given for failure to show proof of liability insurance.