A 32-year-old Puyallup man accused of shooting another man and leading Lacey police on a high-speed pursuit is being held in the Thurston County jail in lieu of $100,000 bail.
Frank Jonathan Taylor made his preliminary appearance in Thurston County Superior Court on Monday.
Lacey police arrested Taylor on Sunday after a lengthy pursuit that ended in a wrong-way collision on Interstate 5 in south Thurston County. The pursuit occurred four days after he allegedly fled the scene of a shooting on the 1200 block of Boone Street Southeast, which is south of Pacific Avenue and west of Sleater Kinney Road.
Police booked him into the county jail on suspicion of first-degree assault with a gun, second-degree assault, unlawful possession of a firearm, eluding police and possession of a stolen vehicle.
Judge Mary Sue Wilson found probable cause for the crimes relating to the pursuit Monday and set the bail amount. She determined the court could not be assured he would attend his next court hearing or that he would not interfere in the case. She also believed there was substantial danger he may commit another violent crime.
Judge Sharonda Amamilo previously found probable cause to order a warrant for Taylor's arrest for crimes related to the shooting incident.
Deputy Prosecutor Daniel Scida said Taylor poses a serious risk to public safety and asked the court to set bail at $250,000.
Scida alleged Taylor intentionally shot someone twice on April 3 with a firearm he could not lawfully possess and then fled from police.
"He drove at speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour," Scida said. "He rammed three police vehicles... went on a high-speed chase for over 20 minutes and then drove the wrong way down I-5 and collided with a private individual."
Bradley Dodge, brother of the man who was shot, told Wilson his brother is mostly paralyzed from the chest down as a result.
"This is going to change the rest of his life," Dodge said. "Unable to walk again, unable to care for himself. Unfortunately, this gentleman (Taylor) has shown that he is an absolute risk to society. We are hoping to hold him accountable."
Kevin Griffin, Taylor's public defense attorney, acknowledged that the circumstances were "incredibly serious," but he added Taylor should be presumed innocent until proven otherwise.
Griffin asked Wilson to consider Taylor's financial circumstances and set bail at $15,000. He said that amount would have "just as much impact as $250,000."
Taylor has a lengthy adult criminal history dating back to 2009 that includes vehicle prowling, assault, theft and drug charges among other crimes.
The investigation
A probable cause statement describes the investigation into the shooting and the pursuit from the perspective of law enforcement.
Lacey police responded to the shooting at 3:35 p.m. April 3 on the 1200 block of Boone Street Southeast. Their statement indicates officers arrived to find a man with two gunshot wounds at the base of his neck, just above the collarbone.
First responders transported the injured man to Providence St. Peter Hospital in Olympia and he was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle for care. The statement says the man may have suffered permanent paralysis of his lower extremities.
Witnesses told police an argument broke out between the gunshot victim and another man over gas money, according to the statement.
The victim allegedly engaged in a physical fight with the other man and then tried to stop him from leaving the scene in a vehicle. Taylor allegedly got out of the vehicle, shot the victim and then drove away.
Lacey police located Taylor on Sunday after following a cell phone ping that showed the Puyallup man driving back to the Lacey area, according to the statement.
The pursuit began at 3:42 p.m. when Taylor passed a patrol vehicle near the intersection of Draham Street and Carpenter Road Northeast. Police say he drove a small black sedan that had been stolen out of Olympia.
Taylor allegedly failed to yield for a traffic stop and continued driving at a high speed through Lacey.
He eventually made it onto southbound Interstate 5 and continued driving at speeds up 120 miles per hour while weaving in and out of traffic, according to the statement.
Taylor left southbound I-5 at Exit 88 near Grand Mound and then entered northbound I-5. An officer conducted a precision immobilization technique (PIT) maneuver that forced the vehicle to come to a stop.
Law enforcement tried to box the vehicle in with their patrol cars, but the statement says Taylor backed up his car and rammed the patrol cars to escape. At that point, Taylor allegedly turned around and began traveling north in the southbound lanes of I-5.
Taylor's car collided with the passenger side of a civilian vehicle after driving the wrong way for about three-quarters of a mile, according to the statement. The collision disabled Taylor's car and he immediately surrendered with his hands in the air.
The statement says Taylor wasn't injured in the crash but the occupants of the other car sustained minor injuries.
Court records show Taylor's arraignment has been scheduled for 9 a.m. April 23 at Thurston County Superior Court in Olympia.
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