A man was arrested on July 10, after allegedly fleeing from police officers on an unlicensed motorcycle, crashing it and then assaulting an officer.
On July 10, the Renton Police Department (RPD) reported that a 19-year-old man was in jail after assaulting and injuring a police officer. The department said that an officer saw the man riding an unlicensed motorcycle around 6:40 a.m. July 10, near 108th Ave. SE., and SE., Petrovitsky Road, tried to stop the man, but the motorist instead began to flee.
According to the department, the officer later found the man still operating the motorcycle in the 1700 block of Shattuck, but the man did not stop. The department said that the man began to flee again, crashed and then began to resist arrest.
“During the officer’s attempt to detain and make an arrest, the suspect punched the officer, and they went to the ground,” RPD spokesperson Sandra Havlik said.
According to the department, the man was then taken into custody and booked into jail. According to the King County Adult and Juvenile Detention jail lookup portal, the man was arrested at 6:46 a.m., and then booked into the King County Correctional Facility, where he remains on an attempt to elude and assault investigations.
The officer that the man allegedly assaulted was then treated and released from Valley Medical Center later the same day, according to the department. Havlik said the responding officer was treated for pain in his elbow, fingers, knee and leg.
“Running on foot would be a misdemeanor charge of obstructing a law enforcement officer,” Havlik said. “Running from an officer while in a vehicle is eluding, and that is a felony charge.”
Havlik said it depends on the situation, but the punishment for operating an unlicensed motorcycle ranges from a ticket up to impoundment of the vehicle.
Havlik said running from the police is against the law and it’s dangerous. She said running from police can escalate a situation and be unsafe for the suspect, the officer and bystanders.
Havlik said the department has referred charges to the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.
