MARYSVILLE—On Oct. 26, Marysville police officers received information about a vehicle traveling through the city with a stolen license plate. Sergeant Aly Babcock located the vehicle and began coordinating resources before attempting a traffic stop.
Corporal Dylan Burnett arrived with an important tool: StarChase, a GPS tracking system that deploys an adhesive tracking device onto a vehicle. The technology allows officers to track a vehicle remotely, reducing the need for potentially dangerous pursuits.
After the tracker was successfully deployed, officers attempted a traffic stop. The driver immediately fled. Rather than initiate a pursuit and increase risk to the public, officers disengaged and allowed the technology to do its job. Using real-time location information from the StarChase device, officers safely monitored the vehicle’s movements while coordinating resources.
The vehicle was later disabled after the driver attempted to avoid a spike strip deployment. Two occupants fled on foot, prompting a coordinated response from patrol officers and members of the training unit.
Officer Gus McKinley initially gave chase, but the suspect soon ran directly into the path of additional officers near Grove Street and State Avenue. Officers moved in to take him into custody, but apparently, the suspect had other plans. The suspect got back up and took off again, this time through busy traffic. That’s when our training unit, consisting of Sergeant Garrett Wiseman and Officer Derek Oates, joined Officer McKinley in the pursuit.
The driver was taken into custody a short time later, and the passenger was located shortly afterward by Detective Darryn Wiersma. Investigators determined the vehicle had been stolen from another jurisdiction with plates changed.
Author: Lynnwood Times Staff
