Charges are expected to be filed Wednesday or Thursday against a Lopez Island teen driver suspected of killing a jogger on Lopez Sound Road July 26.
“We expect charges to be filed on Wednesday or Thursday of this week,” Prosecuting Attorney Randall K. Gaylord said today. “We feel that the sheriff’s investigation is far enough along that we can make our case.”
The 15-year-old driver’s attorney is Mark Kaiman of Lustick Law Firm in Bellingham. He wasn’t prepared to comment today.
Paul John Jaholkowsky, 26, of Abbotsford, B.C. was jogging southbound on the road about 2:30 p.m. when, according to authorities, he was struck head-on by a 1974 Chevy Nova driven by the 15-year-old Lopez boy, who was driving north at what is believed to be a high rate of speed.
Cumming said today that the car is believed to have been traveling about 70 mph when it struck Jaholkowsky; authorities believe Jaholkowsky died instantly and he was declared dead at the scene.
The driver had a 17-year-old friend in the front passenger seat. Neither teen was wearing a seat belt at the time of the collision, Cumming said.
Jaholkowsky had been visiting the island with a friend who, Cumming said, identified Jaholkowsky following the collision.
Moments before Jaholkowsky was struck, a Seattle family of four bicycling southbound narrowly escaped being mowed down by the car, authorities said.
The Chevy came up over a slight rise in the road and clipped a 7-year-old girl, who was flown to Harborview Medical Center with wrist and hand injuries. The car then struck Jaholkowsky.
The driver lost control of the car, which slammed twice into an embankment before coming to a stop.
The 17-year-old passenger was taken to Harborview Medical Center; his head had struck the windshield and he was thrown from the vehicle when the sedan slammed into the embankment.
The 15-year-old driver was released to his parents after the collision.
Cumming said even though the 15-year-old boy had a learner’s permit, state law still prohibits him from driving solely with a chaperone 17 years of age. The car belongs to the 15-year-old’s parents.
Neither alcohol or drugs appear to have played a role in the collision; Cumming said vehicle speed and inexperience are likely to blame.
Today, Cumming said the teen could be charged with vehicular homicide and assault, and possibly more serious homicide charges.
