A Pierce County Sheriff’s deputy was killed in a crash while racing to the aid of fellow deputies who were being attacked by a domestic violence suspect.
It was just after 3 a.m. Saturday when a 911 call reported that a child had been attacked and there were multiple weapons inside the house on 113th Street South in Parkland, according to Det. Ed Troyer with the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department.
One minute after two deputies arrived on scene, they radioed for help, saying the suspect was attacking them and they needed priority backup.
Deputy Cooper Dyson, 25, was the first deputy to respond for help, Troyer said. As Dyson was racing to the scene, the deputies radioed they were still in a fight and the suspect was trying to get to a shotgun in the home.
But about five minutes later, another call came into 911 reporting a car had crashed into a building in the 1300 block of 112th Street East. Medics and police arrived to find it was a Pierce County Sheriff patrol car, and that deputy Dyson had died at the scene.
Troyer said Dyson most likely hit some water, hydroplaned, then barrel rolled into the side of the building with his car catching on fire.
“He’s a good guy. A guy that wanted to show up to calls,” Toyer said. “Wrong place, wrong time, the weather. The car left the roadway. An unfortunate series of events occurred. The car rolled, it caught on fire and he was trapped inside. Just unfortunate due to the traffic accident. It’s horrible.”
“This is a tremendously sad loss,” added Pierce County Sheriff Paul Pastor. “Our Deputy was responding to help other Deputies in a dangerous domestic violence situation. It is another hard reminder of the dangers and difficulties our Deputies face.”
Dyson had been with the department since 2018. He was married with a 2-year-old son and his wife is pregnant with their second child.
“This is truly heartbreaking for their family and our department,” Troyer said.
We honor you, Cooper Dyson.