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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Bail set at $75,000 for driver involved in New Year’s Day crash

Bail was set Thurday at $75,000 for the allegedly drunken motorist who smashed into a car in North Spokane early New Year’s Day, sending a man and pregnant woman to the hospital with critical injuries. Bryan A. Hoofman, 25, is facing charges of vehicular assault in connection with the 2 a.m. smashup at Francis and Crestline. He also faces third-degree assault charges for allegedly kicking police and a medical technician at Holy Family Hospital, where he was taken after the collision. Police initially feared that Nellya Grezhdieru, the victim who is four months pregnant, might lose her unborn child due to internal injuries. Police spokeswoman Monique Cotton said Thursday that the baby is expected to be OK. According to court documents witnesses told police that Hoofman was driving west on Francis Avenue when he ran the red light and hit a southbound car on Crestline Street. He smelled of alcohol but refused to take field sobriety tests, though he reportedly told a police officer that he had been drinking. The driver of the other car, Yuriy Grezhdieru, suffered a broken pelvis, broken femur, skull fractures and internal bleeding. Hoofman’s public defender argued for a bond of only $5,000, citing Hoofman’s honorable discharge from the U.S. Air Force after three years of service and his attendance at an unspecified local college on the G.I. Bill. Spokane County Superior Court Judge Annette Plese noted that Hoofman became violent in the Holy Family Hospital emergency room and reportedly kicked a police officer in the face and kneed an emergency room technician in the face. “I am concerned about the danger to the community,” she said, setting bail at $75,000. Hoofman also has a prior drunken driving offense from Alaska, officials said.