Man who struck police officer headed for trial
A four-day jury trial has been set in the case of a man accused of intentionally hitting an Abby-Colby police officer with his car during a 2019 incident in Abbotsford.
Dan W. Willison, 57, faces seven felony charges including recklessly endangering safety, drunk driving (fifth offense) and fleeing an officer in connection with a May 2, 2019, incident at the Home Motel, during which he accelerated his car toward Officer Kyle Jollin.
In response, Officer Jollin fired his weapon twice at Willison, injuring him as he sped away from the motel. No charges were filed against Jollin for shooting Willison, as he was in the act of defending himself.
At a hearing last week in Marathon County Circuit, a four-day jury trial was scheduled to start on Dec. 6 of this year, with a final pretrial hearing slate for Nov. 15.
The prosecution is being carried out by district attorney Theresa Wetzsteon and assistant DA Sid Brubacher. Willison, who is currently imprisoned at Red Granite Correctional, is being represented by Anne Renc.
According to a report by the Department of Criminal Investigations, Officer Jollin was dispatched to the Home Motel to look for Willison, who had active felony warrants. An anonymous caller notified police of his location out of safety concerns for a relative.
When Jollin arrived at the motel, he saw Willison sitting in his PT Cruiser, smoking a cigarette with the window rolled down. Jollin requested back-up from K-9 officer Jim Wagner, who arrived with the CAPD’s dog.
Jollin then approached Willison’s vehicle with his flashlight on and his service weapon drawn, according to the report, which also indicates that Jollin identified himself as a police officer.
Video footage from a body camera worn by Jollin showed that he commanded Willison to show his hands and yelled “do not move” as he approached Willison’s vehicle, the report states.
The report says Willison’s vehicle accelerated toward Jollin, striking the offi cer and knocking him onto the hood. Jollin later told the DCI agent that he held onto the hood out of fear that he would not survive being run over by the vehicle.
“With his gun in his left hand and holding the hood with his right, he fired one round through the windshield,” the report states.
Jollin, who has since left the CAPD, could clearly see Willison through the windshield before he rolled off the hood and fired a second shot at the driver’s side door, according to the report.
Willison was later treated for a nonlife- threatening gunshot wound to his left upper chest, according to the report. The entire sequence of events occurred within a matter of four seconds, the report states, and then Willison took off northbound on Highway 13, with offi cers in pursuit.
Clark County Sheriff’s deputy Syzmanski said he pursued Willison for just over 10 minutes at a very high rate of speed.
“Willison was driving at speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour and at times drove down the middle of the roadway and crossed and straddled the solid yellow line,” the report states. He continued to go over 100 mph as he drove through the 25 mph zone in Milan.
Officer Jollin and Deputy Syzmanski eventually caught up with him and placed him under arrest. He was transported to a hospital for treatment of his wound, and a blood test later showed that he had a blood-alcohol level of .184 — more than twice the legal limit.
In May, Willison was sentenced to two years in prison and two years of extended supervision for felony bail jumping, and sentenced to one year in prison and one year of extended supervision for battery/domestic abuse-repeater.
Willison has previous convictions for domestic abuse-harassment, disorderly conduct, marijuana possession, and attempted battery to a law enforcement officer.
