Man fleeing fight at Pasco party admits hitting a woman with his car
.jpg "The Franklin County Courthouse at 1016 N. 4th St. in Pasco.")
A Pasco man is headed to jail for hitting a woman with his car while fleeing a fight at a party.
He was also charged with running from police about a month later.
Jonathan Jimenez-Virrueta, 21, pleaded guilty Tuesday in Franklin County Superior Court to vehicular assault and attempting to elude police.
He was sentenced to a total of 11 months in jail and 12 months community supervision once he is released.
Jimenez-Virrueta apologized to the victim, who appeared in court.
“I just want to apologize, and I am pleading guilty because that is the way for me to do the right thing,” Jimenez-Virrueta said through a Spanish interpreter.
His victim said that she was left with a head injury that requires ongoing treatment and has struggled to provide for her family due to missing work.
She told Jimenez-Virrueta that while none of them should have put themselves in the position for the incident to happen, she would have been in court supporting him if he had just stopped to check on her.
Benton County Superior Court Judge Diana Ruff praised the victim for the grace she showed Jimenez-Virrueta, and reminded him of the seriousness of his crimes.
“I know you’re very young, it’s incredibly disappointing that you would have this assault in June and then elude a police officer in August where you could have hurt someone or killed them,” Ruff said.
“You’ve caused lasting and substantial damage to a member of your community who has shown you a lot of grace that she didn’t need to show you. I hope you remember that if you are ever allowed to drive again, just follow the rules then you won’t hurt people, and you won’t put our community in danger.”
Vehicular assault
Jimenez-Virrueta was at a part in the 8500 block of Dusty Maiden Drive in west Pasco on June 7.
A fight started between Jimenez-Virrueta and other party-goers about accusations that he had attacked a woman, according to court documents.
He ran from the fight and got into his car to flee. He hit a woman standing nearby, who was recording the fight.
Investigators allegedly linked Jimenez-Virrueta’s social media posts with the party location, court documents said. He sent text messages about the fight that happened, saying that he “didn’t do anything” before six people tried to attack him.
Then in August, officers attempted to pull him over, and he fled.
A warrant was issued for his arrest in September, and he was arrested on Dec. 29.
- Reporter Cameron Probert contributed to this report.
This story was originally published February 17, 2026 at 12:22 PM.
