Washington Democrat candidate arrested for DUI after multi-vehicle collision

Krista Perez's pickup truck struck a parked car on a Tacoma street just after midnight on August 11, setting off a collision that would eventually damage five vehicles. The Washington state Democrat, who had just won her primary race for a state House seat weeks earlier, found herself in the back of a patrol car that night, sobbing and praying as officers processed her arrest for driving under the influence.

The incident unfolded in the 29th Legislative District, where Perez had finished first in the primary election. She was set to face incumbent state Representative Melanie Morgan, also a Democrat, in the November general election—a matchup that would determine which candidate advances, since Washington's top-two primary system sends the leading vote-getters to the general regardless of party. The collision and subsequent arrest threatened to reshape that race before it had truly begun.

Body camera footage from Tacoma Police captured the immediate aftermath. When officers arrived at the scene on South G Street, Perez initially told them she had not been involved in an accident. When pressed about what happened, she said she did not know and claimed she had never been in an accident before. She explained that she had been driving from a friend's business on Tacoma Avenue South when the collision occurred. When asked if she had consumed alcohol, she acknowledged drinking wine at the business—one glass, she said, though when the officer asked about the size of the glass, she suggested he contact the business directly.

The officer asked Perez to rate her sobriety on a scale where zero meant completely sober. She initially deflected, saying she wanted to go home, but when asked again, she rated herself a four. The officer then explained that standardized field sobriety tests were available and voluntary, offering them multiple times. Perez repeatedly declined, continuing to say she wanted to go home and expressing confusion about what was happening. When the officer clarified that her options would be determined that night, not later, Perez asked if she was allowed to refuse the tests. The officer confirmed the tests were entirely voluntary. She declined them, and was placed under arrest for DUI.

Inside the patrol car, the footage shows Perez in visible distress. She sobbed for several minutes, praying aloud and asking for divine help. "Help me, God. Help me. Help me. Holy Spirit, help me, God," she said repeatedly.

Prosecutors charged Perez with DUI and added a refusal enhancement to the charges. According to an arrest report, the enhancement stemmed not from her roadside refusal—which is legally distinct under Washington law—but from what happened later at Tacoma Police headquarters. There, police said she was unable to provide a usable breath sample after three attempts before the testing machine timed out.

Washington state law does not prohibit someone facing DUI charges from serving in the legislature. Other Democratic lawmakers have retained their seats after alcohol-related incidents. House Majority Leader Joe Fitzgibbon, for instance, apologized in February after acknowledging he had consumed alcohol before a House Appropriations Committee hearing, calling it a poor choice and pledging it would not happen again.

As Perez's case moves forward, the question of how voters in the 29th District will respond remains open. The primary victory that positioned her for the general election now sits alongside the arrest record and the police video, both part of the public record that will shape the final weeks before November.