A 32-year-old Lynnwood man was arrested Saturday and booked into the Snohomish County Jail for vehicular homicide following a fatal crash in Marysville that resulted in the death of a Washington State Patrol trooper.

Detectives with the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office Collision Investigation Unit (CIU) are investigating the crash, which occurred just before 3 a.m. According to sheriff’s office spokesperson Courtney O’Keefe, north county deputies responded to a serious collision on I-5 southbound at 136th Street Northeast. Upon arrival, deputies discovered a Washington State Patrol (WSP) trooper had been struck by a vehicle and died at the scene.

The state patrol identified the trooper as 27-year-old Christopher M. Gadd, who served two-and-a-half years with the WSP. He is the 33rd member of the WSP to die in the line of duty in the agency’s 103 years, the state patrol said in a news release. 

Gadd is survived by his wife, Cammryn, daughter Kaelyn, father WSP Trooper David Gadd, mother Gillian and sister Jacqueline, who currently serves as a trooper with the Texas Department of Public Safety.

“Chris’s passing is a devastating loss to his family – a family who knows all too well the risks of public service but still has offered that service with unquestioned valor and now, unfathomable sacrifice,” said WSP Chief John R. Batiste. “I can tell you that across the entire Washington State Patrol, every head is bowed, every knee is bent, and every heart is broken as we mourn this loss. To honor Chris, even in sorrow, we will go on. We will continue to serve. Because he did, we must.” 

During the investigation, Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office detectives determined the suspect vehicle was traveling at a high rate of speed on I-5 south, veered off the roadway and struck the rear end of the trooper’s vehicle, which was parked on the right shoulder.

After the initial collision, the suspect vehicle became disabled and a van traveling southbound collided with it, O’Keefe said. The driver of the van was transported to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The five passengers in the van were not injured.

The suspect remained at the scene and was transported to Providence Regional Medical Center for an evaluation following the collision. A blood search warrant for the suspect was approved and administered.

Southbound I-5 from 136th to 116th Streets was closed for several hours Saturday while CIU detectives investigated the collision.

Official cause and manner of death will be determined by the Snohomish County Medical Examiner’s Office.