June 3, 2021 La Center – On June 3, 2021, at approximately 7:15 PM, Washington State Patrol troopers observed a passenger vehicle traveling south on Interstate 5 near milepost 39. The vehicle was observed speeding and matched a description of a vehicle that fled from a recent traffic stop made by the Kelso Police Department. Troopers initiated…
June 3, 2021 Washington – The Washington State Patrol (WSP) will participate in the National Secure Your Load Day on June 7th, 2021. During this day, Troopers and Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Officers (CVEOs) will be conducting traffic stops and inspections on vehicles to ensure that all cargo is safely secured. Both Troopers and Officers will be…
June 2, 2021 Olympia – According to data from the National Center for Fatality Review and Prevention, there were 1,479 child deaths due to accidental fires from 2004-2016. Of those deaths, 175 were attributable to youth fire play. • 90% occurred in the child’s or a relative’s home.
• 61% occurred between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m.
• 49%…
June 1, 2021 PORT TOWNSEND – A Washington State Patrol (WSP) Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Officer (CVEO) conducting a traffic stop was struck by the impaired driver of a stolen pickup truck on U.S. Highway 101 near Discovery Bay Tuesday morning. CVEO Alfred L. Alderson, age 55, was completing the inspection of a semi-truck at around 9:30 a.m.…
June 1, 2021 Chewelah, WA – May 30, 2021 at 7:10pm, police officers from the Chewelah Police Department and deputy’s from the Stevens County Sheriff’s Office (SCSO) responded to a 911 call reporting an armed male firing a weapon at the Chewelah Manor Apartments located at 501 E Main, in Chewelah. After a short standoff, one…
May 31, 2021 The Washington State Patrol’s twenty-eighth member to die in the line of duty was Trooper Sean M. O’Connell Jr. Trooper O’Connell died from injuries sustained in a motorcycle collision while performing extra traffic duty following the collapse of the Skagit River Bridge - since re-named in his honor. A New York native, Trooper O’Connell…
May 27, 2021 Olympia, WA - Pursuant to arrest warrants stemming from criminal charges by the state’s Office of the Attorney General, the Washington State Patrol has arrested three individuals in conjunction to the Manuel Ellis homicide investigation. The three individuals were each charged in Pierce County Superior Court. All three voluntarily turned themselves in this…
May 26, 2021 Olympia, WA - The Washington State Patrol (WSP) has signed on to the 30x30 Pledge – a series of low- and no-cost actions policing agencies can take to improve the representation and experiences of women in law enforcement. These activities are helping policing agencies assess the current state of a department with regard…
May 26, 2021
Thomas James Hanlin
Commissioned – August 17, 1937
End of Watch – May 26, 1945
The Washington State Patrol’s ninth fallen officer succumbed to medical complications after being involved in a serious collision on the snow-blanketed Mount Baker Highway. Initially thought to be minor, Patrolman Thomas J. Hanlin’s head injuries resulted in his death nearly…
May 24, 2021 OLYMPIA, Wash. – Today, the Washington Department of Ecology launched a new statewide safety and litter prevention campaign with its partners from the Washington State Patrol, the Washington State Department of Transportation and the Washington Traffic Safety Commission. The We Keep Washington Litter Free campaign’s first initiative focuses on alerting Washingtonians that unsecured…