Drunken driving suspect kills himself when cornered

OLYMPIA – A man was pursued for investigation of drunken driving for nearly 10 miles on Interstate 5 early Wednesday, then shot himself to death when he was cornered, the bullet nearly hitting an officer, authorities said.

The freeway remained closed into the start of morning commuter traffic a couple of miles northeast of the state capital.

Washington State Patrol Trooper John J. Gundermann told KIRO Radio the chase began near Fort Lewis, south of Tacoma, when a southbound car was seen speeding and “basically using all lanes of the road.”

Pursued by three or four patrol cars, military police and Thurston County sheriff’s officers, the car hit a sheriff’s spike strip that flattened the tires. The vehicle went out of control about a mile down the road, hitting a concrete barrier on the freeway in Olympia, Gunderson said.

After stopping, the man moved around inside the car in apparent agitation, took pictures of the officers with his cellular telephone and then dialed 911 and asked that they be told to back off for a minute or two, Gunderson said.

Officers waited five to seven minutes, then moved toward the car again. As one officer moved to open the door, the man suddenly drew a gun and shot himself to death in the head, Gunderson said.

“This could have been worse than it was,” he said. “That bullet almost hit one of the officers.”