Whatcom man reportedly fires gun at passing truck, then attempts to ram troopers’ vehicle
A Whatcom County man reportedly fired a shotgun at a passing motorist, hitting their windshield, and attempted to ram a Washington State Patrol vehicle during a short pursuit early Saturday morning.
Patrick Jarvis, 52, was booked Saturday into Whatcom County Jail on suspicion of first-degree assault, drive-by shooting, discharging a firearm, attempting to elude police vehicles and DUI. Jail records show Jarvis is being held in lieu of $350,000 bail.
Shortly after 7:30 a.m. Saturday, WSP received reports that a driver along Highway 9 near Strand Road had been shot at by a man, later identified as Jarvis, Trooper Anthony Reese told the Bellingham Herald Monday morning.
The driver, who was in a 2021 Ford Ranger, reported he had seen Jarvis’ truck stopped on the shoulder along Highway 9, and that Jarvis was standing outside the truck with the door open, according to Reese.
The driver attempted to drive around Jarvis, but it was then that Jarvis fired a shotgun at the ground and then at the passing truck, Reese reported. The shot shattered the windshield of the passing car.
The driver reported some glass fragments in his eye, but no other injuries from the incident, according to Reese.
A witness reported seeing Jarvis fire the shotgun at the passing truck and then get back in the light blue Chevrolet pickup he was driving and head northbound on Highway 9 and park near his residence, according to Reese. The witness reported Jarvis then got out of the truck and began pacing around.
The witness reported Jarvis then reportedly got back in the truck, drove a short distance and then got out of the truck holding a gun, according to Reese. The witness lost sight of Jarvis when he neared the porch of his residence.
A WSP sergeant arrived and kept an eye on Jarvis while more troopers arrived, Reese reported, and then saw Jarvis come back out of the residence and get in a gray Toyota Tacoma and head northbound on Highway 9.
Jarvis reportedly tried, unsuccessfully, to ram a trooper’s patrol vehicle, Reese reported, and troopers initiated a pursuit that lasted only a short distance.
After the pursuit, Reese said that Jarvis got out of his truck and came at troopers while carrying a firearm until he saw that a number of troopers’ rifles were pointed at him, and he surrendered to troopers and was arrested.
Other than the driver who was shot at, Reese reported there were no injuries from the incident.
Though a witness told troopers that Jarvis had been fired from his job a few days earlier, Reese said what caused the incident is still under investigation.