Pierce County deputies arrest 4 teens in major street racing takeover
Jan 31, 2025, 3:47 PM
Pierce County Sheriff’s Department deputies shut down a major street racing/intersection takeover last weekend in Parkland. Two 15-year-old boys and two 18-year-olds were arrested.
It happened last Saturday night at the intersection of Park Avenue South and 108th Street South. Deputies told KIRO Newsradio they received multiple 911 calls from drivers trying to get through or around the intersection.
Deputies arrived at the scene and used stop sticks but the driver kept going with flattened tires. To view deputy bodycam footage of the events leading up to the arrests, click the player below.
Footage of Pierce County street racing incident
The driver was caught a few blocks away and the four teens were arrested. Tap the video player at the top of the page to view deputy bodycam footage of the arrests.
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Pierce County Sheriff’s Department Deputy John Lapham informed the teens of the gravity of the situation.
“It is illegal to observe street racing,” Lapham explained. “It is illegal to be a bystander of street racing. It is illegal to videotape street racing. It is illegal to show your friends video of street racing. All this stuff is illegal.”
Pierce County takes street racing very seriously because of the danger involved to those driving, those attending and those who find themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time.
“We will shut them down,” Pierce County Sheriff’s Deputy Carly Cappetto told KIRO Newsradio. “We will arrest them. We will impound their vehicles. We will take phones. We will take cameras. We will make sure that full charges get added to every person.”
Last week, an 18-year-old was killed after he lost control while he and his friend were allegedly street racing on Interstate 5 (I-5), according to the Washington State Patrol (WSP).
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The 20-year-old driver of the other car pulled over to try to help the 18-year-old, reported law enforcement. When the investigation was over, the 20-year-old was arrested for vehicular homicide in the death of his friend, even though he was not directly involved in the crash.
WSP Trooper Kelsey Harding said it was the first time in her career she saw a driver, not directly involved in a crash, charged with vehicular homicide.
James Lynch is a reporter at KIRO Newsradio. You can read more of James’ stories here. Follow James on X, or email him here.
