Man Inflicts Serious Wounds To Himself With Knife After High-Speed Pursuit In Lincoln County

A man who police say led them on a high-speed vehicle pursuit through Lincoln County is now in medical custody after he reportedly caused serious intentional injuries to himself with a knife.

The Lincoln County Sheriff's says the incident began at around 4 p.m. on Wednesday (Jan.28) when deputies attempted to pull over a vehicle that was traveling well above the posted speed limit on U.S. Highway 2 (US-2) about seven miles west of Davenport.

When the vehicle failed to stop, deputies initiated a pursuit which continued for approximately 29 miles in the westbound lanes of US-2 at speeds reaching 95 mph.
During the chase, deputies deployed spike strips that proved unsuccessful at disabling the suspect's vehicle, and the pursuit was momentarily paused due to public safety concerns when the suspect entered the town of Wilbur at high speed.

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Near the outskirts of town, the suspect performed a U-turn in the 700 block of Northeast Main Avenue and began driving towards deputies in the eastbound lanes of US-2.

Deputies then made a second attempt at deploying spike strips, and this time, they proved successful at flattening the tires of the suspect's vehicle, which came to a stop near the Telford Rest Area a few miles east of Wilbur.

The male driver and lone occupant of the vehicle was then given commands to exit the vehicle, but he refused, so deputies approached it to forcibly remove him.

As deputies closed in on the suspect, they discovered that he was armed with a knife, which he also refused commands to drop.

Before deputies could reach the vehicle, the suspect turned the knife on himself, inflicting multiple serious injuries to his person before deputies were able to subdue him and secure the weapon.

Deputies provided first aid at the scene and the man was subsequently transported to a hospital in Spokane for treatment.

A news release from the Sheriff's Office described the investigation into the incident as "active," but did not indicate if any charges have been filed against the man, nor his current medical status.