Man gets over 2 years for fleeing cops in stolen truck

Kelly

by Richard Byrd
| December 26, 2018 12:00 AM

SOAP LAKE — A man who attempted to flee police after he was spotted sleeping in the front seat of a stolen pickup truck in October will be spending almost 2 1/2 years in prison.

Travis Kelly, 39, pleaded guilty in Grant County Superior Court to second-degree possession of stolen property, obstruction of a law enforcement officer and possession of a controlled substance. The controlled substances charge relates to a separate arrest in July 2017. Kelly was sentenced to a total of 29 months behind prison bars. He was initially charged with possession of a stolen vehicle and obstruction of a law enforcement officer, but the obstruction charge was dropped in a plea agreement.

The sentence relates to an Oct. 20 call handled by the Soap Lake Police Department. Grant County Fire District No. 7 Chief Kirk Sheppard contacted MACC Dispatch after he spotted a male, later identified as Kelly, sleeping inside of a running vehicle across from the scene of a medical call in the 700 block of Third Place Southeast in Soap Lake, according to court documents.

Police arrived and spotted a Ford F-250 parked with it’s engine running. A SLPD officer approached and noticed Kelly sleeping with his body sprawled across the front of the truck. The vehicle did not have front or back license plates and when the officer woke Kelly up he proceeded to put the truck into drive and take off north down Third Place Southeast.

Kelly was able to evade police in Soap Lake, but he was later spotted by an Ephrata Police Department officer heading west on state Route 28. Kelly later turned onto road 17.7 Northwest, northeast of Ephrata, and parked at a vacant lot. He took off from the truck on foot but was detained by a deputy with the Grant County Sheriff’s Office after a brief pursuit.

The truck sustained significant damage due to going airborne off of a small embankment at some point in the incident. A methamphetamine pipe with burnt residue was located under the steering wheel in the truck, as well as marijuana in a non-prescription container on the passenger side of the vehicle.

Kelly, who had outstanding misdemeanor, felony and Department of Corrections warrants out for his arrest at the time, told police he attempted to flee because the truck was stolen.

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