Moses Lake man sentenced for eluding officer

MOSES LAKE — A Moses Lake man was sentenced for attempting to elude a Moses Lake police officer and crashing into a row of trees near a church.

Daniel Lyles, 20, of Moses Lake, pleaded guilty to attempting to elude. Grant County Superior Court Judge John Antosz followed a joint recommendation between Deputy Prosecutor Paul Gaffney and defense attorney Tyson Lang and sentenced Lyles to two days in jail. Two counts of hit-and-run (property damage) were dismissed in a plea agreement between Gaffney and Lang.

On Aug. 2 a Moses Lake Police Department officer was heading east on East 11th Street, approaching Skyline Drive, and reported hearing the sound of a vehicle “under heavy acceleration,” according to police records. The officer spotted a Ford Mustang with a Confederate flag hanging off the back pass directly in front of his patrol car.

The Mustang, driven by Lyles, was traveling at 60 mph in a posted 25-mph residential zone. The officer pulled up behind Lyles and activated the overhead lights on his patrol vehicle, but Lyles sped up and attempted to make a left turn onto East State Avenue.

“Due to the extreme speed and the vehicle being turned the vehicle was unable to make the turn. The vehicle jumped the curb and struck the retaining wall for 1201 S. Skyline Dr. The residence is on the corner of Skyline and State (Avenue) with the retaining wall on State Avenue,” wrote the officer.

Lyles backed up the Mustang and pulled away from the retaining wall and started heading east on State Avenue toward Jefferson Avenue. Lyles turned onto Jefferson Avenue, where he reached speeds between 40-45 mph. He attempted to make a right turn onto East Nelson Road, but failed to negotiate the turn and struck the curb on the south side of the road, drove up on the curb, struck a chain link fence, and crashed into a row of trees on Grace Lutheran Church’s property, according to police records.

Lyles bailed out of the vehicle and fled the scene on foot. He was later contacted in the emergency room at Samaritan Hospital, where he was seeking treatment for injuries he sustained.

Richard Byrd can be reached via email at city@columbiabasinherald.com.