By Caleb Hutton
For update, see below.
A suspected drunk driver struck and injured a woman who was walking to her mailbox Thursday afternoon, Dec. 6, leading police on a hit and run chase near Bellingham city limits.
The woman, 49, was walking west across the street in the 4200 block of Northwest Drive, when a northbound Ford van struck her at 3:40 p.m., said Washington State Patrol Trooper Mark Francis.
She was catapulted and appeared to suffer a broken shoulder. The van sped off, Francis said.
Witnesses tailing the van phoned in the license plate number. Law enforcement tracked down a tan 1991 Ford Aerostar within minutes. One side of the vehicle had dents and scratches — but some of those may have been old, Francis said.
The driver, a 56-year-old man with a Bellingham mailing address, was still being tested and questioned at 5 p.m., the time of this post.
He’s expected to be booked for driving under the influence of alcohol and felony hit and run, Francis said. His name should be released in the coming hours.
Troopers were interviewing the woman at St. Joseph hospital.
Update: Steven Gary Fisher, the alleged driver, was booked into jail on suspicion of vehicular assault.
I also corrected the age of the victim. She was treated and released at St. Joseph, a hospital spokeswoman said.
To the victim-get well soon! And be more careful next time! Too many drunks/druggies out there driving around town…
Best wishes for a complete recovery to the victim. Hopefully you can overcome this incident and not have any residual effects! While we could have hoped for a Police Officer from Bellingham PD or even the Sheriff’s office to make an arrest, hopefully nothing was screwed up and the lack of integrity on the part of the arresting agency will not make this even worse for you.