Pierce County Sheriff’s Office major charged in connection with DUI, crash involving family

Pierce County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) Maj. Chadwick Dickerson was charged in connection with driving under the influence and vehicular assault, according to charging documents with the Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.

Dickerson’s charges follow his arrest after a crash near Graham in July that involved a family, including a pregnant woman who was driving.

A 72-hour hold for Dickerson to not contact witnesses or victims previously expired. However, the prosecuting attorney’s office had requested that the sheriff order the witnesses who work with PCSO not to speak with Dickerson, to preserve the integrity of the investigation.

Discrepancies in arrest of Pierce County Sheriff’s Office major 

Dickerson’s arrest showed discrepancies between law enforcement over whether Dickerson exhibited any signs of alcohol use and whether he left the scene of the accident after being told to remain until investigators arrived.

“In the Dickerson matter, our office is not filing charges today,” Adam Faber, a spokesperson for Pierce County, wrote in an email. “The State Patrol’s investigation is ongoing, and the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office will continue to review evidence as it comes in.”

At the probable cause hearing for the 72-hour hold, the court imposed conditions to include no contact with witnesses or victims, but those court conditions would expire automatically.

Pierce County Sheriff’s Office major collides with SUV

According to court documents, investigators said Dickerson, a 25-year veteran who oversees all sheriff’s detectives, failed to yield the right of way at the intersection of 132nd Avenue E. and 288th Street E. and collided with an SUV.

“When Dickerson entered the intersection, his Dodge Ram pickup struck the passenger side of the Ford Expedition that was traveling west on 288th,” Deputy Prosecuting Attorney for Pierce County Loren Halstrom wrote in an incident report based on Washington State Patrol (WSP) investigations. “The Ford Expedition rolled onto its side and stopped against a fence. The Dodge Ram stopped in a ditch.”

Pierce County prosecutors now say a deputy at the scene, who was described as a technical collision investigator, instructed Dickerson to remain at the scene until WSP Trooper Shannon McKenzie arrived to investigate. However, Dickerson left the scene after his wife picked him up.

“The deputies informed Trooper McKenzie that Dickerson had been picked up by his wife and transported to MultiCare Emergency at 132nd and SR 161,” Halstrom said in a Probable Cause Declaration.

Court documents also said when McKenzie asked if Dickerson showed any signs of impairment before leaving the scene, deputies said no.

“When asked about signs of impairment, deputies on scene informed Trooper McKenzie that they did not observe any and stated there were no odors of intoxicants,” Halstrom stated. “When asked if Dickerson was speaking normally, they advised there was no slurring in his speech.”

Later, at the Urgent Care, WSP said they found several indicators of impairment and arrested Dickerson on suspicion of DUI.

“While speaking with Dickerson about the collision, troopers noted several indicators of impairment, including bloodshot, watery eyes, and a strong odor of intoxicants on his breath,” a WSP press release said.

The Pierce County Sheriff’s Office said they requested WSP to take over the crash investigation, based on the severity of the collision and Dickerson’s position with PCSO.

SUV involved in crash had 6 occupants, including pregnant woman

The six occupants in the Ford Expedition were a 27-year-old woman who was driving and is seven months pregnant, her 30-year-old husband, her 57-year-old mother, and her three children, ages 8, 4, and 3, according to a news release from WSP. The 57-year-old woman suffered several broken bones. The other occupants appeared to be uninjured.

The investigating trooper, McKenzie, also looked inside Dickerson’s Ram pickup truck to check for valuables before the truck was towed.

“The truck appeared to be cleaned out of valuables,” Halstrom said. “There was a storage compartment in the rear seating area that was empty.”

In a statement, a Pierce County spokesperson said, “The Pierce County Sheriff’s Office confirms that one of our majors was arrested over the weekend in connection with this incident. This is a deeply concerning matter, and our thoughts are with everyone impacted.”

This story was originally published on July 15, 2025. It has been updated and republished since then.

Contributing: Julia Dallas, MyNorthwest

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