Trooper grabs gun from shooting suspect on I-5 during Wednesday commute

A shooting on I-5 near Bridgeport Way in Lakewood backed up traffic in both directions Wednesday evening. All lanes on the freeway were reopened later that night.

Washington State Patrol Trooper Ryan Burke said one male and one female suffered a single gunshot wound each. Both have been transported to a local hospital and are being treated.

Trooper Burke said it’s still uncertain what spurred the incident. Ongoing procedures at the hospital prevented the suspect from being interviewed on Wednesday. Detectives were eventually able to meet with the suspect early Thursday morning.

“The shooting appears to have started inside a vehicle,” Burke wrote on Twitter. “The victim exited and walked north on the inside shoulder and was met by witnesses who assisted her. Meanwhile, a sergeant contacted the shooter, who also had exited with a gun in hand.”

“The shooter pointed the gun toward the sergeant and then pointed it toward himself. The sergeant observed the gun to be jammed. The sergeant advanced on the shooter, grabbed the gun, and was able to throw the gun down. The two ended up on the ground with the suspect in custody,” Burke continued.

Detectives also report that as he was being taken into custody, the shooter told a sergeant on the scene that he “didn’t want to back to jail.”

The incident response created traffic backups and delays. The Washington State Department of Transportation said the left three lanes were blocked at 3:45 p.m. All northbound lanes reopened around 6pm and southbound lanes reopened just after 7pm.

Trooper Burke said the incident did not involve any police.

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