UPDATE: Delridge crash involving suspected stolen car; (update) 15-year-old arrested

| Crime | West Seattle news | West Seattle police

9:14 PM: Avoid Delridge between Myrtle and Graham – police are blocking it off after a crash involving a suspected stolen car. According to police-radio communication we’d been monitoring, the car matched the description of one taken in an armed carjacking elsewhere in the city, It came to police attention in West Seattle tonight when someone reported suspicious behavior involving its occupants outside a convenience store on 35th SW. (Officers told dispatch the store clerk locked the doors so the people who seemed suspicious couldn’t get inside.)

9:31 PM: Commenter Kathryn confirms the car crashed into a building – the dispatch address indicates it’s an apartment building near Delridge/Willow.

9:50 PM: Kathryn sent that photo taken by neighbor Aimee, who she says reports that “the car is wedged between the apartments and the rock ledge.” Police have detained the three people who were inside the car when it crashed. They’re all “juvenile males,” according to what officers just told dispatch.

9:56 PM: Delridge is reopening.

11:47 PM: Thanks to the texter who sent that photo of the wrecked car being pulled out. Radio communication suggests at least one of the teenagers was arrested; we’ll update this story with whatever followup info we get from police later.

ADDED 3:21 PM THURSDAY: SPD has finally provided that followup info, and posted to SPD Blotter. First, confirmation that the crash followed a pursuit:

… SPD officers later located the vehicle, which had previously been stolen at gunpoint during a carjacking and attempted to detain it but the suspect drove away. After receiving authorization to pursue, police followed the suspect vehicle briefly until it collided with a fence, which caused it to fall down an embankment, and strike an exterior wall of an apartment building.

Here’s the SPD photo of how it got wedged:

Meantime, police also say the registered owner of the car told them he was carjacked by an “armed man” Tuesday night on Beacon Hill, They don’t know if the three people involved in that – the carjacker and two people who joined him in driving away the 2010 Toyota Corolla – were the same three found after the Delridge crash. But police say they recovered a “realistic-looking BB gun in the car” after the crash. Here’s their photo:

The 15-year-old driver was arrested and booked into the Youth Services Center; the other two found in the car last night, 13- and 14-year-old boys, were released to their families.

Kathryn February 22, 2023 (9:26 pm)

I live in the apartment complex in the adjacent building. Car crashed into the building and flipped over.

Nars February 22, 2023 (9:29 pm)

Was it the new construction?
- WSB February 22, 2023 (9:38 pm)
  
  Willow Court Apartments, per this person
  https://twitter.com/FlapJackNorton/status/1628626676296093696
  But that’s the same block as the Lam-Bow rebuild.
- Aimee February 22, 2023 (11:34 pm)
  
  No, Willow Court Apartments right next to the new construction.
WSB February 22, 2023 (9:30 pm)

Thank you. Hope everyone is OK – the SFD dispatch was low level. If anyone has a photo, consider sending to westseattleblog@gmail.com or texting 206-293-6302 – we can’t get there right now.

Jordan Hufnagel February 22, 2023 (9:58 pm)

Willow Court resident here – it appears that Delridge is now open to traffic.

WSB February 22, 2023 (10:04 pm)

Thank you!

Aimeé February 23, 2023 (1:00 am)

3 juvenile males were arrested.

WSB February 23, 2023 (3:53 pm)

Three were detained but as police finally confirmed this afternoon, only one of them was actually arrested and booked.

Witness February 23, 2023 (10:14 am)

I observed a yo-yo of SPD lights and sirens as two squad cars blasted past me on 35th at Kenyon heading south.
35th was traffic free as I sat and watched as SPD continued way down to Trenton or Barton where they momentarily stopped, then u-turned to head back north on 35th.
Soon I realized that the two SPD units were in hot pursuit of a white sedan that went screaming by me, (I was still parked, mouth agape, now).
The white sedan careened right onto Holden past the Fire Station with the two SPD cars in hot pursuit. Soon another two SPD units joined in the chase.
I assume the term “pursuit” is correct as the SPD responders were closely following at speeds easily double the speed limit and the officers in cars needed approval from superiors.
The suspect must have sped directly past the Southwest Precinct before the pursuit ended with at least six SPD cars blocking all of Delridge requiring a short detour to get to my destination, The Skylark.
I could not make out details of the suspect driver nor see other occupants of the fleeing sedan.

WSB February 23, 2023 (10:56 am)

There was no discussion on the channels we monitor as to whether a “pursuit” was formally called – I am following up with SPD shortly as they haven’t published anything about this yet aside from one tweet last night. I heard that the suspects’ vehicle was “taking off northbound” and shortly thereafter, the officers called in the crash, including a request for SFD medics.
- Troy February 23, 2023 (11:18 am)
  
  I was in the apartment directly above where the car hit, and heard the cars and sirens moments before the car crashed through the fence and hit the apartment building. Could hear the commotion outside as my apartment was directly above at the top floor. This is so common an issue along Delridge with cars exceeding the limit and many accidents have occurred along this section over the 18 years I have been living along this stretch of the street.
  - Del February 23, 2023 (11:46 am)
    
    A girl died in from of my home on Delridge after a speeding driver hit her and it haunts me to this day. For years I’ve begged the city to do something about the speeding drivers.
    - Aimee February 23, 2023 (12:50 pm)
      
      We all need to keep our eyes peeled while driving as well. In the last 3 weeks, I’ve had very aggressive drivers race past me on Delridge going probably close to 60mph. One was behind me at a red light while I was waiting to turn left onto Delridge. The driver kept honking at me and I didn’t know why. Then, he proceeded to go around me into the oncoming lane of traffic, run the red light, turn onto Delridge and run the next couple of red lights too while going around other people. Scary to be on the roads anymore.
    - West Seattle Steve February 23, 2023 (1:33 pm)
      
      The city has been trying to cut down speeding on Delridge for at least 20 years. It used to be 4 lanes and a higher speed limit. They cut it down to 2 lanes and a left turn lane. People were passing both ways in the turn lane. They replaced the turn lane with a median between intersections. I don’t know what the next step would be.
    - Chris February 23, 2023 (1:55 pm)
      
      Pretty simple – patrol. Hit these people in the pocket books. I live in close to Delridge and constantly people speeding and passing in the bus lanes and turn lanes. They always find a work around. Let them do that with less $$ in their pocket and see if that helps.
M February 23, 2023 (11:13 am)

Does this have anything to do with the pedestrian that was struck by a driver at 35th and Holden yesterday, as reported by Ryan Packer?
Aimee February 23, 2023 (12:13 pm)

Interesting! Based on your witness account, I would have thought they were heading north on Delridge at the time of the accident. I live in the Willow Court Apartments and the skid marks I saw this morning, leading to the crash site seemed to indicate the vehicle was traveling south on Delridge when it lost control. I want more info!

Fed Up February 23, 2023 (12:30 pm)

In a week these “teenagers” will be back stealing cars, robbing a 7-11, or robbing you! I’m all for rehabilitation & compassion but at some point (& we reached that years ago) these repeat offenders need to be incarcerated … or maybe pull a playbook from the Florida Governor & bus these idiots to the Sunshine State … there’s your free ride!

Brian February 23, 2023 (8:10 pm)

I don’t understand the scare quotes around the word teenagers. Are you implying that they’re actually fully grown adults masquerading as adolescents? That’s the story I want to know more about.
Amy February 24, 2023 (7:31 am)

Yes, incarceration has greatly improved our society and crime rates………
- Byron James February 25, 2023 (10:01 pm)
  
  And non-incarceration has made it worse.

WSB February 23, 2023 (3:29 pm)

Just updated with the information police finally released.

Journo February 24, 2023 (10:18 am)

Less than 24 hours later and it is defined as “finally” released. ?? Why don’t you write the sentence without the implication that it is tardy?

Caleigh February 23, 2023 (9:20 pm)

I live in the bottom floor apartment, in the image of the car wedged between the building and wall my bed is by the trunk of the car. I heard the sirens and squealing tires that didn’t stop at 9:15 and launched out of bed in time to see the vehicle fall outside the window. I heard police shortly after ask “do you have any drugs in the vehicle?” And someone answer “yeah, I’ll throw them out” – by then I was fully panicked and got my five year old from bed (we could see the license plate from her window) and we stayed somewhere else for the night. 0/10, not a fun experience, I do not reccomend.

Aimee February 24, 2023 (1:12 pm)

Caleigh, that’s awful! I’m so sorry. I’m in the B building too, just around the corner to the south and up 2 floors. I knew if it was loud for me, it had to be absolutely terrifying for you! Please take good care.

1994 February 23, 2023 (9:38 pm)

Teenagers can be so DUMB! And they are not good at driving. Why not engage in some age appropriate behaviors and stop with the criminal wannabe behavior. Thank goodness we have juvenile detention still to keep themm and us, safe for a few days.

Ice February 24, 2023 (5:21 am)

Yes we get a few weeks of safety followed by a lifetime of increased statistical probability of them doing the same thing again. Our justice system isn’t here to prevent crime, it’s just punishes stupid people who do this kind of thing with torture and makes them stupider and more angry at the world.
- Gatewood88 February 25, 2023 (10:49 pm)
  
  As long as juveniles are charged as juveniles- arresting, charging , and housing them somewhere where they cannot easily commit crime doesn’t impact their ability to get a job/be a contributing citizen later as their juvenile records are sealed… In a case like this- letting 2 of the 3 armed juveniles who likely car jacked someone within 24 hours before, then flipped a stolen car into an apartment building- go home to their families with no arrest or charges is INSANE. They WILL do this again- there are NO consequences and they KNOW IT.I’m not saying we arrest an imprison kids who go to a party or are caught snorting cocaine or whatever – but what these kids were caught doing could easily kill people and they were driving a stolen car that was gotten by a CARJACKING. Which is a very violent crime.These kids are clearly far down the path of criminality – our justice system at the very least needs to have them on some kind of monitoring as well as have their family /home life checked out before sending them home sans charges . Their families clearly were not adequately supervising them- and having them back out on the streets with zero consequences endangers all of us.
  - Michael Carroll February 28, 2023 (1:35 am)
    
    Well said!
  - Yeah February 28, 2023 (6:46 am)
    
    Children (including teenagers) do not understand consequences the way adults do. Their brains are not fully developed yet. It’s literally science. They do not calculate the risks to their futures, decide there are none, and then proceed. It’s impulsive behavior because that’s what brains at that stage of development do. Yes, actions have consequences (and the juvenile court system does create MAJOR consequences). But having those consequences haunt them forever will not act as a deterrent to their behavior as children (because again, it’s a brain development thing) and will give them fewer options to be productive members of the community as adults.
- 1994 February 27, 2023 (10:34 pm)
  
  Feb 27 update on WSB about the 15 year old says he has a recent felony. Some people learn the hard way and during the hard way at least the rest of us, and the kid, are safe for a while. Maybe something positive will sink into the youth’s brain while in detention. Certainly detention is not the most likeable environment for a misbehaving youth but they have made choices that have consequences. Restorative justice may not be a good consequence option. Some of these theories sound great until the wheels hit the road, and then the theory crashes.

Sorry, comment time is over.