Local authorities prevent individual from jumping off Rainier bridge
Thurston County and Yelm police convinced an individual who was threatening to jump off a bridge in Rainier to step off the ledge Friday, Sept. 20, Thurston County Sheriff Derek Sanders said in a Facebook post.
Thurston County deputies were dispatched to state Route 507 by the train trestle near Gehrke Road Southeast and 133rd Avenue Southeast, and they, along with a Yelm Police crisis negotiator officer and county mental health co-responders, responded to the call.
According to Sanders, deputies and officers brought the individual safely back down to the roadway where they connected with Southeast Thurston Fire Authority and transported the person to the hospital.
The name of the individual was not made public.
Coroner’s Office identifies motorcyclist deceased after high-speed chase through Yelm and Nisqually
The Thurston County Coroner’s Office identified 36-year-old Eatonville resident John P. Robinson as the person who died in a high speed chase through Yelm and surrounding areas during the evening hours of Friday, Sept. 20.
Thurston County Coroner Gary Warnock confirmed the identity of the motorcyclist to the Nisqually Valley News on Monday, Sept. 23 and added that his autopsy was scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 24.
According to a press release from Thurston County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Mike Brooks, Yelm Police officers tried to stop Robinson within Yelm city limits before the motorist fled at speeds between 80 and 100 mph.
The chase continued along Yelm Highway and onto the Nisqually Indian Reservation, prompting Nisqually Tribal Police to join the pursuit. Robinson continued to flee north on Highway 510 and into Lacey, where Thurston County deputies joined the pursuit, as well.
According to the press release, the motorist evaded law enforcement through “several Lacey roads” before traveling west on Mullen Road and once again touching speeds nearly 100 mph and causing deputies to lose pace.
The chase eventually ended on Wiggins Road when the rider “failed to notice the T intersection” and crashed straight into a driveway. The press release stated that deputies immediately administered life-saving measures, but Robinson was pronounced dead at the scene. The motive for eluding law enforcement is not currently known.
Warnock can be emailed at gary.warnock@co.thurston.wa.us.
