Hit-and-run Man gets nine months for running over Beverly woman

EPHRATA — A Othello man has been sentenced in Grant County Superior Court to nine months for a hit-and-run incident that seriously injured a woman in Beverly last year.

Raymundo Juarez-Garcia, 24, of Othello, pleaded guilty to hit-and-run and vehicular assault in Grant County Superior Court. Judge John Knodell sentenced him to nine months on the hit-and-run charge and eight months on the vehicular assault charge.

The judge was following a joint recommendation between Deputy Prosecutor Carole Highland and defense attorney Stephen Kozer.

The hit-and-run occurred on Oct. 19, 2014 at or around 6:45 p.m.

The Grant County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a hit-and-run collision in the 17300 block of Main Street Southwest of Beverly. A woman advised that another woman arrived at her residence stating she had been hit by a car and the vehicle fled the scene.

The victim was transported to Kadlec Medical Center in Richland for treatment, according to police records. She reportedly sustained several broken ribs, an injury to her shoulder and a series of abrasions on her back.

Deputies later received information in regard to the incident and responded to the 17300 block of Tacoma Street Southwest. A woman told police her ex-boyfriend, Juarez-Garcia, had called her after leaving her residence and told her he had hit something in the road but did not stop.

The woman told deputies she believed Juarez-Garcia was involved in the hit-and-run incident and advised he was en route to the College Apartments in Moses Lake.

Deputies located a vehicle parked at the College Apartments. The tires matched the same tread design as that found in the dirt at the scene of the hit-and-run. The vehicle reportedly had a small amount of damage on its bumper and several small dents in the hood and right front panel, according to police records.

Deputies contacted a woman at the College Apartments who advised she had seen Juarez-Garcia get out of the suspect vehicle. She said Juarez-Garcia came to her door and said he was going to leave his vehicle there for the night.

Juarez-Garcia told the woman he was in trouble and got into a blue Chevrolet pickup truck with another person and left.

The victim was later released from the hospital. She said that, on the day of the incident, she was walking on the east side shoulder of Main Street and heard a vehicle approaching her. She said that, as she turned around, the vehicle struck her in the lower extremities and she was thrown to the ground.

The woman told deputies she felt two tires travel over her legs and torso and that she overheard what she thought was someone laughing, according to police records.

After gathering all of the evidence deputies concluded Juarez-Garcia was the driver of the vehicle.

“Based on the physical evidence present, it is believed Raymundo would have had to cross the opposing lane of travel, travel off the roadway to the east approximately six feet and strike (the victim) walking southbound,” the police report stated. “Raymundo then rapidly accelerated and fled to the south in the Nissan Maxima.”