Sentenced trial for Spokane man accused of murder during the I-90 crash last year

A Spokane County jury was unable to pass judgment on a 41-year-old Spokane man who was reportedly responsible for the death of his passenger in a traffic incident on Interstate 90 last year.

A new trial will begin on March 14th.

Spokane County’s Superior Court judge Maryann Moreno opened a vehicle murder case against Casey L. Walker after chairman Jury told Moreno on Thursday afternoon that the jury was unlikely to reach an agreement in a “reasonable time.”

The jury began deliberations on Wednesday afternoon.

An alternate juror replaced a juror Wednesday after Moreno learned that Walker allegedly spoke with the juror in an elevator in the courthouse that day.

Walker reportedly drove a 1968 Jeepster Commando west on Interstate 90 east of Spokane at around 1 p.m. on Oct. 30, 2020, according to court documents. Walker was reportedly in his lane when he pulled up in the left lane next to a 2005 Dodge Ram pickup truck driven by Shane Gustin.

According to court documents, Walker started yelling at Gustin and waving toward his vehicle. Walker eventually got into the left lane of the Dodge by about a tire width before accelerating ahead, the documents say.

As Walker accelerated, he allegedly ran into a vehicle in front of him and “jerked ruthlessly to the left” without warning and cut off the Dodge. When Walker jerked the wheel to the left, he reportedly pinched the right front of the Dodge with his left rear wheel, forcing his Jeepster to spin counterclockwise. The Jeepster shot into the central barrier and drove up on it, the documents say.

It slid a short distance along the top of the barrier, tripped over an adjacent seam and overturned violently, the documents say. As the Jeepster rolled, Walker was thrown from the vehicle and came to rest in the center lane of westbound I-90 and suffered serious injuries.

According to the documents, Walker’s co-driver, Lynn K. Chapman, was also thrown out of the vehicle and trapped under the jeepster as it rolled onto the roof. The jeepster immediately caught fire and Chapman was trapped under it. The fire is believed to have burned the jeepster and Chapman, who was trapped under it, was also burned and died on the scene.

Walker reportedly told a Washington State Patrol sergeant that he and Chapman had gone to Carpenters Union Hall on Sullivan Road shortly before the collision and paid a pension. Walker told the sergeant he plans to use the money to leave Washington, the documents say.

They said Walker’s girlfriend and daughter had bought a couple of acres in Hawaii and he wanted to get there as soon as possible.

Spokane County’s assistant prosecutor Dale Nagy said Wednesday during the closing arguments that Walker drove aggressively, was not paying attention and was driving too fast just before the accident.

“This is reckless driving, reckless disregard for others,” said Nagy.

Walker’s attorney, Erek Puccio, said in closing arguments on Wednesday that heavy traffic, highway ruts and wind should be considered the day of the crash.

“It was so windy that (authorities) couldn’t fly the drone to take measurements that day,” said Puccio.

Walker is also charged with first-degree robbery and second-degree charges of bodily harm, according to court documents, following an incident in September 2020 in which he is accused of suffocating and robbing a woman who leased an apartment from him.

A trial on these charges is scheduled for January 3rd.