Originally published July 27, 2009 at 10:09 AM | Page modified July 28, 2009 at 9:39 AM
Comments (0)
E-mail article
Print
Share
15-year-old driver kills jogger, injures Seattle child in Lopez Island accident
A 15-year-old boy was driving a souped-up car too fast on a Lopez Island road Sunday afternoon when he plowed into a group of bicyclists and a jogger, killing the runner and seriously hurting a young Seattle girl on a bike, San Juan County sheriff's officials said.
Seattle Times staff reporter
A 15-year-old boy was driving a souped-up car too fast on a Lopez Island road Sunday afternoon when he plowed into a group of bicyclists and a jogger, killing the runner and seriously hurting a Seattle girl on a bike, San Juan County sheriff's officials said.
The 7-year-old girl was flown to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle with "very severe injuries" to her hands, said San Juan County Sheriff Bill Cumming.
The incident occurred about 2:40 p.m. on Lopez Sound Road, a popular biking and running route on the east side of the island.
The girl was biking with her mom and dad and a sibling, while nearby Paul John Jaholkowsky, 26, of Abbotsford, B.C., was jogging and walking up the two-lane rural road.
The 15-year-old Lopez Island boy and his 17-year-old friend had been tinkering with an extra-powerful engine in a 1974 Chevy Nova. They decided to take the car out for a test spin even though the 15-year-old only has a learner's permit, Cumming said.
The teen was going too fast and couldn't control the powerful car, the sheriff said. He veered across the road and struck the girl, then continued a short distance and hit Jaholkowsky. The car then careened up an embankment, rolled back onto the road and spun around violently.
Jaholkowsky was pronounced dead at the scene.
Neither teen was wearing a seat belt, and the 17-year-old slammed into the windshield and was ejected out the side of the car, the sheriff said. He suffered injuries and also was flown to Harborview.
The 15-year-old driver was flown to another mainland hospital and later released to his parents, Cumming said.
No charges have been filed.
Cumming said the family of the 15-year-old is cooperating with investigators.
The Sheriff's Office didn't release the names of the injured girl or the teens.
Ian Ith: 206-464-2109 or iith@seattletimes.com
Copyright © 2009 The Seattle Times Company
![]()
UPDATE - 09:46 AM
Exxon Mobil wins ruling in Alaska oil spill case
NEW - 7:51 AM
Longview man says he was tortured with hot knife
Longview man says he was tortured with hot knife
Longview mill spills bleach into Columbia River
NEW - 8:00 AM
More extensive TSA searches in Sea-Tac Airport rattle some travelers

nwautos
A safety standard issued by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on Jan. 13 is intended to prevent occupants from being ejected through ...
Post a comment
- Agency set to investigate handling of 911 call about Josh Powell
- Proposal to link Market, aquarium may be too ambitious for Seattle
- Chilling 911 tapes reveal pleas for help to go to Josh Powell home
- UW's Shawn Kemp Jr. makes own way despite familiar name, number | Steve Kelley
- State Medicaid to quit paying for ER visits deemed unnecessary
- NBA's David Stern open to league returning to Seattle
- Prosecutor: Powell's final act ends doubt he killed wife
- Was idea of court-ordered test too much for Josh Powell?
- Local aerospace suppliers say they feel squeezed by Boeing
- California gay-marriage ruling may affect Washington
- Gay-marriage bill passes House, awaits Gregoire's signature
347 - Sheriff's office unhappy with 911 dispatcher in caseworker's call
248 - Historic day for gay marriage as another fight looming
228 - Gay-marriage ruling may affect Washington or Prop. 8 ruling could reach into Washington
196 - State Medicaid program to stop paying for unneeded ER visits
169 - 3 big health insurers stockpile $2.4 billion as rates keep rising
134 - Source: NY, California to sign mortgage settlement
116 - Study shows link between payroll and wins not as big as before, but teams like Mariners still face bigger obstacles than others
109 - Lakewood cop accused of taking donations for slain officers' families
74 - Video --- UW offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Eric Kiesau
71
- State Medicaid to quit paying for ER visits deemed unnecessary
- Here it is: The secret to stir-fried chicken | Taste
- Local aerospace suppliers say they feel squeezed by Boeing
- 3 big health insurers stockpile $2.4 billion as rates keep rising
- Dicks channeled federal money to Puget Sound project his son ran
- Buttoned Up: Nine immutable laws of time management
- Happy Hour: French-accented charm at Gainsbourg
- 'Gauguin and Polynesia': dazzling mix-and-match | Art review
- Gay-marriage bill passes House, awaits Gregoire's signature
- Agency set to investigate handling of 911 call about Josh Powell







