A lawsuit filed by the family of a deceased truck driver claims that local police officers were conducting a “rogue pursuit” that went against department policies and state laws when the suspect crashed into their family member’s rig, killing him.
The June 2023 crash took the life of 57-year-old truck driver Bohdan Vetrov in Lakewood, Washington when he was ejected from his semi truck cab. The wrongful death lawsuit was filed in Tacoma court on Wednesday, January 21st.
According to The News Tribune, the officers were pursuing a 16-year-old suspect in a stolen car in an attempt to scare the suspect and teach him a lesson. The suit calls this a “rogue pursuit,” and says it goes against the policies of the Lakewood Police Department and Washington state law. The suit alleges the officers were not trained on the legalities surrounding pursuits, or certified in any sort of pursuit-intervention. The officers also did not contact their supervising sergeant before chasing the suspect…