The Clark County Medical Examiner’s Office has identified the pedestrian who was struck and killed by a vehicle June 24 in west Vancouver.
Ramon A. Gutierrez, 37, of Vancouver died of blunt head and neck injuries, according to a news release issued Tuesday by the medical examiner’s office. His death was ruled an accident.
Vancouver police were dispatched shortly after 9:30 p.m. to the 1700 block of West Fourth Plain Boulevard, near Simpson Avenue, for a vehicle versus pedestrian crash. Gutierrez was pronounced dead at the scene, according to a police department news release.
The driver, identified as Nicholas D. Moline, 25, of Vancouver, was arrested in connection with the crash but has not been charged.
Moline said he was driving east on Fourth Plain when the vehicle in front of him changed lanes, and he felt a “bump” in the road, the news release said. When Moline looked back, he said he saw a person lying in the road.
Witnesses reported that Gutierrez was standing up prior to being hit by the 1995 Nissan SX, Vancouver police spokeswoman Kim Kapp said.
Officers believed Moline was intoxicated at the time of the crash and that there was probable cause to arrest him, Kapp said. A blood sample was taken, but the results will likely not be available for months due to a backup of cases at the Washington State Patrol crime lab, Kapp said.
Moline was scheduled to appear June 26 in Clark County Superior Court on suspicion of vehicular homicide while driving under the influence of intoxicants. But before his case was called, the prosecution asked that it be stricken from the morning’s docket, pending further investigation. Police could refer charges at a later date.
