Wash. trooper shot, killed in traffic stop

Wash. trooper shot, killed in traffic stop

SEATTLE (AP) — A Washington state trooper making a routine traffic stop was shot and killed early Thursday, and dozens of officers canvassed the area looking for the shooter.

The trooper had stopped a pickup around 1 a.m. today about 20 miles west of Seattle across Puget Sound, and radioed the location and license plate number, said Trooper Russ Winger.

When the trooper didn’t respond to status checks, a Kitsap County sheriff’s deputy went to the scene and found the trooper outside his patrol car.

He was taken to St. Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma where he was declared dead.

Three hours later, officers found the truck abandoned on a county road near Port Orchard, about two miles from the shooting scene.

Troopers, deputies and other officers searched the area for the driver using dogs and questioning people. They urged residents to stay inside and call 911 if they saw anything suspicious.

Dogs did not pick up a track, Winger said.

Investigators know who the truck is registered to, but don’t know if that person is a suspect in the shooting, Winger said.

The last Washington State Patrol trooper killed on duty was James Saunders, 31, who was shot in 1999 during a traffic stop in Pasco. Nicolas S. Vasquez pleaded guilty to aggravated murder and was sentenced to life in prison without parole.