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Convicted and Wanted Felon Flees from Deputies, but Experience, Technology, and Perseverance Lead to His Arrest
Spokane County Sheriff’s Deputies responded to a welfare check due to a possible Domestic Violence Order of Protection. The suspect, a wanted and convicted felon, fled in a vehicle and tried to evade Deputies. Due to safety concerns, the pursuit was terminated. Deputies, with the assistance of Automatic License Plate Readers (ALPR), reacquired the suspect’s vehicle and deployed spike strips without being in pursuit. With his tires running flat, the suspect pulled into a parking lot and began to walk away. Deputies quickly closed in and took him into custody on several new felony charges and a confirmed felony warrant.
On May 27, 2025, at approximately 3:25 am, Spokane County Deputies responded to a reported welfare check and possible Domestic Violence Order of Protection Violation (DVOPV) at a residence near W. Wedgewood and N. Stevens Street.
An anonymous caller reported that 39-year-old Zachary J. Hawthorne was at/near a protected person’s home in violation of a court-issued Domestic Violence No Contact Order, and he was driving a black Acura.
Familiar with Hawthorne and knowing he was a convicted felon, had made recent threats to harm/shoot himself or planned to force law enforcement to shoot him, and had posted a picture of him with a gun, Deputies began to check the area.
Deputies reviewed the served protection order signed by Hawthorne. They learned the order forbade Hawthorne from contacting the protected person by any means and that he was not allowed to come within 1000’ of the protected person’s residence. Deputies also found that Hawthorne had an active felony Washington State Department of Corrections (DOC) warrant for his arrest.
At approximately 3:50 am, a Deputy observed the Acura traveling west on Wedgewood, well within the 1,000’ of the protected person’s home, as prohibited in the served protection order.
A second Deputy observed Hawthorne driving the Acura near N. Whitehouse Street and W. Francis Avenue. At White House and Houston Avenue, the Deputy, in a fully marked patrol car, activated his emergency lights and siren. Instead of stopping as required by law, Hawthorne accelerated in an attempt to evade the Deputy.
Hawthorne continued west on Francis, reaching speeds of 80 mph in a posted 35 mph zone while driving erratically. At Francis and Alberta, the pursuit was terminated by a supervisor due to safety concerns.
Deputies had established probable cause to arrest Hawthorne for new felony charges of Eluding and Violation of a Domestic Violence Order, in addition to his felony WA DOC warrant.
At approximately 4:45 am, Deputies received an ALPR Alert indicating the Acura was traveling west on Bigelow Gulch Road.
Believing Hawthorne was traveling back to the area, a Deputy set up spike strips on Francis, west of Market. At approximately 4:48 am, he observed the Acura, driven by Hawthrone, approaching, and he successfully positioned the spike strips, causing the Acura’s tires to deflate.
Additional Deputies converged, and Hawthorne was observed walking around the Acura in a parking lot of the 2700 block of E. Francis. As the Deputy approached him in a fully marked patrol car, Hawthorne looked around, possibly looking for a potential escape route. Once he noticed the Deputy’s car, he placed his hands in the air but began walking quickly to the east, away from the Deputy.
Knowing Hawthorn’s history, that he was listed as an extreme officer safety risk, and that he was potentially armed, the Deputy drew her pistol and gave commands for Hawthorn to stop and get on the ground. Despite this, Hawthorn continued to walk east as a second Deputy arrived, cutting off a potential escape. Seeing this, Hawthorn appeared to reevaluate the situation, decided to follow commands, and was taken into custody.
Hawthorne was transported to the Spokane County Jail, where he again violated the protection order by calling the protected person. He was booked on new felony charges for Attempting to Elude a Law Enforcement Vehicle, two counts of Violation of a Court Order, Residential Burglary, and his Washington DOC warrant.
This Spokane County Sheriff Office news article "BODY Cam: Convicted and Wanted Felon Flees from Deputies, but Experience, Technology, Perseverance" was originally found on https://www.spokanecounty.org/CivicAlerts.aspx?CID=7