A Yacolt man involved in a January police pursuit, in which he allegedly tried to ram a patrol vehicle, was sentenced Monday to more than four years in prison.
Andre D. Kennedy, 40, pleaded guilty in Clark County Superior Court in four separate cases to two counts of attempting to elude police, two counts of possession of a stolen vehicle, first-degree theft and heroin possession. Kennedy also entered an “in re barr” plea to felony criminal mischief in the January police pursuit. The plea allows a defendant to plead guilty to a lesser related charge he didn’t commit in order to avoid conviction for a greater offense.
According to the Washington State Patrol, a trooper spotted a silver Kia Sorento with a stolen license plate traveling south on Interstate 205 and onto eastbound Highway 500 at about 11:45 p.m. Jan. 31.
Additional troopers waited for the vehicle near the intersection of 112th Avenue and Northeast 51st Circle, just south of the Gher Road offramp from Highway 500. The vehicle left the highway and went into a 7-Eleven parking lot, where troopers attempted to stop it. Instead, the driver sped off, reaching speeds in excess of 100 mph while traveling in 30- and 40-mph zones.
