LONGVIEW — Jennifer Ann Frost, Kelso High School girls’ basketball coach and dean of students, has been placed on leave after being arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence and hit-and-run charges.
According to court documents obtained by The Daily News, Frost, 34, of Kalama, was arrested in February and scheduled to attend a hearing Monday in Cowlitz County District Court. However, the arresting officer believed she dropped influential names in an effort to talk her way out of the arrest.
According to court records, when being taken into custody after a collision on Tennant Way in Longview, Frost said there was no need to detain her, advising troopers to call her father, Kelso City Manager Andy Hamilton who is also a former Kelso police chief.
She asked that her maiden name of Hamilton be on the warrant to withdraw blood to test her alcohol level, according to court records. She also requested the Washington State Patrol trooper call a specific judge: Cowlitz County District Court Judge Kevin Blondin.
After that exchange, according to a trooper report, “it was clear she was again attempting to use her connections to try and get out of trouble.”
Frost did not respond to requests from The Daily News calls for comment.
According to four police reports, around 10:10 p.m. Feb. 21, WSP troopers were notified of a hit-and-run near Gerhart Gardens at Milepost 9 on state Highway 432/Tennant Way.
The victim told troopers she was leaving work and saw a car speeding in her rearview mirror. She tried to move out of the way, but the driver of the 2014 silver Chevrolet Cruze rear-ended the vehicle at full speed, pushing the victim’s Ford into the left lane and then into a wall.
The victim wrote that the driver didn’t stop.
Another witness saw the damaged Chevrolet take Exit 32 off southbound Interstate 5, court records show.
Troopers caught up to Frost on Kalama River Road, and one noted a strong smell of intoxicants and vomit in the car, according to documents filed with the court. He noted an empty bottle of Twisted Tea, which contains alcohol, on the passenger’s seat.
Records show Frost told troopers she left Shamrock Spirits & Grill, a Longview bar on 15th Avenue, and she refused to take a preliminary breath test.
At 10:27 p.m., Frost was arrested but told troopers it wasn’t necessary. She said her dad was the police chief at the Kelso Police Department and suggested troopers call him.
After obtaining a warrant to draw blood, Frost was booked into Cowlitz County jail.
