'I'm Drunk' Driver Tells Pierce County Deputies After Crash

PIERCE COUNTY, WA -- The words "I'm drunk" and a bit of cash was not enough for a man to escape a crime in Pierce County last Friday. The Sheriff's Department said a man was arrested after he crashed into a car before fleeing the area then offering the two-word explanation to deputies.

The incident was reported around 12:23 a.m. March 2 when deputies responded to a call of a hit-and-run in the parking lot of Parkland Manor Apartments in Parkland.

A witness told dispatchers a man in an older white sedan hit a parked SUV before fleeing the scene. He was then seen driving on the wrong side of the road on 106 Street before hitting another car on Sales Road, according to the Sheriff's Department.

A deputy who caught up to the suspect asked "what his issue was" when the man responded with "I'm drunk." The man also tried to give the deputy money but it was denied.

A blood alcohol test conducted on the man showed a reading of .255 and .262, three times the legal limit of impairment, the Sheriff's Department said.

The suspect was transported to a nearby hospital where he was sedated because he kept biting and screaming. He was booked into county jail and faces charges of driving under the influence, hit-and-run attended vehicle, hit-and-run unattended vehicle, and driving while license is suspended.

--Photo via Shutterstock