WSP targets aggressive drivers in Spokane Valley

Scott Lasher and Jeff Sevigney pulled onto U.S. Interstate 90 in a nondescript Chevy Impala.

All around them, drivers’ halos were missing. Cars swerved, sped, tailgated and cut one another off.

Lasher and Sevigney are Washington State Patrol troopers. Usually, when drivers see them in their marked cars, they act like angels. Troopers call this “the halo effect.”

The Impala is less conspicuous.

“You get to see drivers in their normal environment,” Sevigney said of the unmarked car. “That’s why we’re so effective.”

This week, the duo used the unmarked Impala to enforce the 50 mph construction zone in Spokane Valley.

Troopers – in both marked and unmarked patrol cars – will concentrate on the stretch of I-90 between Argonne and Sullivan roads this week.

The emphasis is part of an effort to promote safe driving during the Thanksgiving holiday. Troopers will work today and throughout the weekend.

The duo – riding together Tuesday because Sevigney’s unmarked patrol car was being repaired – had just finished writing a ticket to the driver of a Toyota Corolla for following too close.

Less than a minute later, they were pulling over a Chevy Blazer that was speeding and tailgating near Sullivan Road.

The troopers can impose additional fines for speeding in a construction zone. Even though the state Department of Transportation recently widened the shoulders in the construction zone, the speed limit remains 50 mph.

During a one-hour stretch, Lasher and Sevigney stopped seven drivers for a variety of offenses, including not wearing a seat belt, speeding and tailgating. They also helped a woman in a motorized wheelchair navigate a narrow sidewalk on North Argonne Road and jump-started another woman’s car.

With the undercover cars, it’s typical to go from one stop to another, Sevigney said. During a 10-hour work day, the troopers will often stop 30 drivers.

The WSP Aggressive Driver Apprehension Team, which both troopers are part of, have pulled over approximately 1,450 aggressive drivers and 4,884 speeding drivers this year, according to WSP numbers.

At the end of Lasher’s shift, he got ready to drop off a rider and head back to headquarters. Suddenly, a pickup truck cut in front of them. “That was aggressive driving,” Sevigney said.

Lasher flipped on the Impala’s flashing lights to make one more stop.