State troopers say shooting incidents in 2022 have already surpassed 2021 numbers

So far this year, Washington State Patrol troopers in Pierce and Thurston counties have responded to more than 40 shooting incidents. According to Trooper Robert Reyer, in 2021 there were only 30.

“That’s an alarming trend when we compare it to last year,” said Reyer. “One thing leads to the other, then all of a sudden we have an escalation that can lead up to people getting shot at.”

Flames, smoke, and sirens could be seen Wednesday along Interstate 5 in Fife after a stolen car was shot at and rammed off an overpass. Later that day around dinnertime, three cars traveling southbound on I-5 opened fire at one another. One of those cars had four children sitting in the back.

The road rage continued into Thursday, with DOT cameras capturing the aftermath of a drive-by shooting on Highway 18 near Weyerhaeuser Way. A car window was blown out and cuts from all that broken glass sent one person to the hospital.

“It seems like people have almost forgotten how to act properly around one another,” said Reyer. “People are just, it seems less patient than they were before COVID.”

Washington State Patrol is engaging in more proactive patrols to combat this. Reyer says these cases are not easy to follow because witnesses and leads are not easy to track down. He asks drivers who witness road rage to take down license plates and contact 911.

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