A parking lot in Sumner’s warehouse district turned into an impromptu racetrack Wednesday night, and it did not end well for the drivers involved. What started as a gathering of burnouts and donuts wrapped up with ten vehicles impounded and ten criminal citations handed out, thanks to a coordinated response from Sumner, Puyallup, and Bonney Lake police departments.
If you’ve ever driven past a business park late at night and wondered why there’s a fresh layer of tire marks scorched into the asphalt, this is exactly how it happens. Officers arriving on scene reportedly smelled the burning rubber and heard engines revving from several blocks away, which is not exactly a subtle way to announce a street takeover is in progress.
Workers in the area weren’t thrilled either, reported KOMO News. Several employees who were still on shift nearby didn’t want to go on camera, but they told reporters the noise carried across the whole district and that people were genuinely worried about walking or driving near the chaos. When your evening commute home involves dodging a cloud of tire smoke, it’s fair to say the fun stops being fun pretty quickly.
Sumner Police Chief Andy McCurdy has seen this movie before. He says takeovers like this one have been a recurring headache, especially once summer rolls around and everyone with a modified exhaust suddenly remembers where the nearest empty lot is.
A Pattern That’s Hard to Shake
According to Chief McCurdy, this wasn’t some one-off event. He says the department has dealt with multiple collisions and injuries tied to similar gatherings in the past, and in at least a few cases, police vehicles themselves have taken damage when drivers tried to flee the scene.
Nothing says “bad night” quite like clipping a patrol car on your way out.
The Law Has Teeth Now
Washington tightened things up in 2024 with a law that doesn’t just target the person doing donuts in the middle of the crowd. Attendees and organizers can now face penalties too, and vehicles involved can be impounded regardless of whether the driver was actively racing or just part of the spectacle. That’s exactly what played out here, with ten cars towed and ten citations issued for street racing and attending the event.
The people cited range in age from 16 to 21, which tracks with what departments across the state have been seeing since the crackdown began.
Is It Actually Working?
Chief McCurdy seems cautiously optimistic. He noted the last couple of summers kept his department busy chasing this exact kind of activity, but reports have been noticeably lighter so far this year. Whether that’s the new law doing its job or just a quieter stretch remains to be seen, but he’s hoping the early enforcement keeps the trend heading in the right direction as the season continues.
Police say the investigation is still active and more citations could follow as they work through evidence from the scene.