THIS STORY HAS BEEN UPDATED WITH ADDITIONAL INFORMATION FROM THE STATE PATROL
BY PEPPER FISHER Sequim — A hit-and-run driver that struck a pedestrian on Highway 101 near Simdars Road Tuesday night turned himself in to the Sheriff’s office Wednesday morning, but the information we have from the State Patrol leaves us with as many questions as answers.
Trooper Katherine Weatherwax told KONP that 66-year-old Lawrence Sherer of Mukilteo was, for reasons still unknown, fighting another man in the roadway at around 11:00pm before he was struck by a vehicle.
“It literally happened right in front of the “Welcome To Sequim” elk sign. So, they’re fighting in the westbound lane. I don’t know if they were in a car and got out and started fighting, but one of the guys, we think, took off in a car. So, they’re fighting, an off duty tow truck driver, I guess, pulled over and he calls it into State Patrol. And he’s kind of like, “Hey, WSP is on their way, like trying to get them to like stop fighting in the roadway. You know? And well, he’s filming, so I saw the video, it’s awful. So, the guys are fighting, they break up, one guy walks off, the other guy’s getting up out of the road. You hear a vehicle coming towards his direction, and then the next thing, you know, you see a white pickup just strike him, and the pickup did not stop. And that was as of last night.”
Trooper Weatherwax says she got a call at about 10:30 Wednesday morning saying a man turned himself in to the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office claiming to be the driver of the white pickup and telling them where it was parked. Weatherwax did not have a name of that suspect, as the much of the information in this case was still being confirmed and investigated, including who the victim was fighting in the roadway and why.
Weatherwax said Sherer was airlifted to Harborview and was in “very critical condition.”
This is a developing story and we’ll bring you more information as it becomes available.