Drunk driver gets 3 months

WARDEN — A Moses Lake man who drank as many as eight beers in the hours before a serious injury collision near Warden in November will be spending three months in jail.

Jose Medina Jimenez, 25, of Moses Lake, pleaded guilty in Grant County Superior Court to vehicular assault-under the influence. Following a joint recommendation between Deputy Prosecutor Kevin McCrae and defense attorney Robert Kentner, Judge John Antosz sentenced Medina Jimenez to three months in jail.

In the evening hours of Nov. 5 Medina Jimenez was driving a 2005 Ford Expedition west on state Route 170, about two miles west of Warden, when he lost control of the SUV. The Expedition rolled and came to a rest on the westbound SR-170 shoulder on its wheels, according to the Washington State Patrol.

A female passenger in the Expedition who was not wearing a seatbelt was ejected out of the SUV, which ended up rolling on top of her. A tow truck was able to lift the Expedition up and the woman was airlifted from the scene to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle for treatment of serious injuries. Two other male passengers in the SUV received minor injuries.

One of the passengers in the vehicle told investigators he witnessed Medina Jimenez consume as many as six beers earlier in the evening. Medina Jimenez, who police say showed obvious signs of intoxication, admitted to drinking “three or so” beers as he was driving from Moses Lake to Othello to pick up the woman who was injured in the collision. He claimed they went to a restaurant in Othello and he drank about five beers and then left to head back to Moses Lake.

“Jose stated on the way back to Moses they took a road towards Warden. Jose told me on this unnamed road (road collision was on) he stepped on the gas a little and lost control of his vehicle. I asked Jose how fast he was going. Jose stated he honestly didn’t remember,” wrote an officer.

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