Man Pleads Not Guilty To Allegedly Trying To Bite Trooper’s Fingers

A Seattle man has pled not guilty to multiple charges after being jailed for DUI and allegedly trying to bite the fingers of an arresting Washington State Patrol trooper.

The Ellensburg Daily Record says 24-year-old Jose Ramos Preciado was arrested at just before midnight on Jan. 30 after citizen reports that he appeared intoxicated while stopped in the middle of Interstate-90 about five miles west of Cle Elum.

Troopers say Ramos-Preciado smelled of alcohol and fell on a patch of ice after attempting to exit the back of a patrol vehicle, and that he then wrapped his legs around one of the patrol car's tires in an attempt to push himself underneath the vehicle.

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When troopers attempted to place him back in the patrol car, Ramos-Preciado allegedly tried to bite at their fingers and once inside the vehicle, began kicking at its doors and windows and repeatedly slamming his head on the security partition between the front and rear seats.

Preciado-Ramos was transported to the hospital for a medical evaluation and a blood draw for the purposes of gauging his blood alcohol level, and while there also allegedly made a hole in the wall by repeatedly slamming his head into it.

Court documents indicate troopers decided to cancel the test over concerns of having to use additional force to make Ramos-Preciado submit to the required blood draw.

Prior to cancelling the administration of the blood test, Ramos-Preciado did reportedly take a breath test which placed him close to twice the legal blood alcohol limit, at 0.13.

He was booked into the Kittitas County Jail on charges of DUI, third-degree assault, third-degree malicious mischief, obstructing a law enforcement officer, and driving without a license.

His bail was set at $5,000 and he entered pleas of not guilty to the charges at his arraignment on Feb. 6.

As of Thursday (Feb. 13), Ramos-Preciado was still in custody at the jail.