Crime & Safety

Woman Who Escaped Lakewood Police By Jumping Out Window, Impersonating Man Nabbed in Oregon

Shannon Hamilton was arrested over the weekend in a Lake Oswego motel, where she barricaded herself in a bathroom before eventually surrendering to police. Last month, she escaped Lakewood police by jumping out of a second-story window.

Jumping out of windows. Impersonating the opposite sex. Barricading yourself in a motel bathroom.

Yes, this story comes from a television show, but it's more reality TV than one might think.

Lake Oswego police arrested a woman Saturday whom had been running from Lakewood and King County authorities for more than a week.

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Authorities have Washington's Most Wanted to thank for this one.

Shannon Hamilton was wanted for stealing a car after ditching court, where she could have had her warrant quashed in mid-March.

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Instead, detectives tracked her to a Lakewood apartment, "but Hamilton took a gutsy jump out of a window and got away," according to Washington's Most Wanted.

Authorities also wanted to arrest her for lying to police: "She’s known to lie about her name and even pose as a male, to get out of being arrested," Seattle Police Sgt. Cindi West told the show.

Police suspected that Hamilton fled to somewhere in Oregon to stay with her mom or her girlfriend.

On Saturday, authorities arrested Hamilton after a patrol officer saw her on Washington's Most Wanted, printed up the story and shared it with fellow officers.

That tip led them to a Motel 6, where her mother was. Before authorities could arrest Hamilton, she barricaded herself in a bathroom. Police brought in a police dog, which prompted Hamilton to surrender without incident.

Hamilton is the 392nd fugitive captured since the launch of Washington's Most Wanted.


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