A 39-year-old Vancouver man who allegedly drove toward two deputies had his bail set at $40,000 during an initial appearance Monday in Clark County Superior Court.
Michael D. Benjamin appeared on suspicion of two counts of first-degree assault and driving under the influence.
Judge Scott Collier appointed Benjamin a defense attorney and set an arraignment hearing for Sept. 7, court records show.
At about 7:45 a.m. Saturday, a Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife officer attempted to stop a black Infiniti that was traveling erratically in the 16900 block of Northeast 72nd Avenue. The same vehicle was reported to 911 for suspected DUI minutes earlier in the area of Northeast St. Johns Road and Northeast 88th Street. The caller reported that the Infiniti had a flat driver’s side tire and drove through a driveway in the area, according to an affidavit of probable cause.
The driver, later identified as Benjamin, refused to stop and went down a private driveway, where he drove around houses, into yards and fields, and toward the Fish and Wildlife officer, according to the Clark County Sheriff’s Office.
The wildlife officer requested backup when Benjamin “drove past him multiple times and putting up his middle finger,” the affidavit says.
Dispatch provided responding deputies with information that the Infiniti and Benjamin matched the descriptions in an earlier assault call that Vancouver police were investigating, the affidavit says.
Deputies located the Infiniti driving in the 7500 block of Northeast 159th Street. The vehicle drove head-on at a patrol vehicle, prompting the deputy to swerve to avoid colliding. “The driver had his middle finger up as he drove past,” according to the affidavit.
The Infiniti then drove toward a second patrol vehicle that also avoided crashing in the 16300 block of Northeast 72nd Avenue. The allegations claim the driver was going about 35 to 40 mph when he “was purposefully ‘playing chicken’ with police,” the affidavit says.
The Infiniti then sped off down a private driveway in the 16600 block of Northeast 72nd Avenue and drove into a hay field to the east of 72nd Avenue. Deputies used a Pursuit Intervention Technique, or PIT, maneuver to stop the vehicle and arrest Benjamin.
Deputies said Benjamin showed signs of being under the influence of intoxicants. A preliminary breath test did not register any blood-alcohol content. Benjamin refused to cooperate during a drug-recognition evaluation, according to the affidavit.
