MARYSVILLE, Wash. — A judge has denied the motion to dismiss charges against a man accused of killing Washington State Trooper Christopher Gadd in 2024.
Raul Benitez-Santana is accused of driving under the influence at the time of the crash, and his attorney filed a motion to dismiss the charges.
On March 2, 2024, investigators say 32-year-old Benitez-Santana was driving over 100 miles per hour on I-5 in Marysville when he hit Gadd’s patrol SUV that was parked on the shoulder.
Gadd’s vehicle was pushed into the road, where it was hit by another van.
He died at the scene.
According to deputies, Benitez Santana -- who was behind the wheel of the SUV -- allegedly had bloodshot eyes and admitted to smoking marijuana hours before the crash, as well as drinking two Coors Light beers.
In addition, Benitez Santana was also in the country illegally, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials said.
Because the Denali that Benitez Santana was driving was equipped with an event data recorder (EDR), detectives were able to obtain its data with a search warrant and determine how fast Benitez Santana’s SUV was traveling when it hit Gadd’s patrol vehicle.
“The EDR captured five seconds of pre-impact data. It recorded the Denali’s speed at 112 mph 1.5 seconds prior to impact. It recorded that from five seconds pre-impact to 2.5 seconds pre-impact the defendant had the accelerator 99% depressed. It recorded he did not activate his brakes until one-half second prior to impact (which reduced his speed at impact to 107 MPH),” probable cause documents from 2024 said.
Now, over a year later, court proceedings are underway.
Benitez-Santana’s attorneys filed a motion to dismiss the charges-- vehicular assault and vehicular homicide involving alcohol or drugs.
The argument for the case’s dismissal
Benitez-Santana’s defense argued that a staffer in the Snohomish County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office asked ICE officials in Seattle to put a detainer on him ahead of a court hearing. They alleged the staffer engaged in “outrageous government misconduct.”
“The state reasonably should have known that including information about the client’s immigration status in a publicly filed court document would result in its dissemination to the public and could materially prejudice the adjudicative process,” the defense team stated.
Since the motion was dismissed, his trial will start Tuesday.
MyNorthwest.com contributed to this report.
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