Man arrested for driving toward 2 people on sidewalk

SEATTLE (AP) — Seattle police arrested a man on Capitol Hill after witnesses said he drove his SUV on the sidewalk to strike two pedestrians who confronted him after he yelled a racial slur at a street performer.

An altercation between the 46-year-old suspect and the street performer happened around 2 a.m. Saturday, the Seattle Police Department said. A man and woman confronted the suspect after he yelled a racial slur at the performer, the Seattle Times reported.

The suspect then began making threatening statements, police said. Witnesses told police that the suspect drove onto the sidewalk in the 1700 block of Bellevue Avenue toward the pair who confronted him, police said.

The suspect then made a U-turn and tried to hit them again, but they were able to duck into a nearby store, avoiding serious injury, police said. The driver walked back to the area but then fled, police said.

Officers found the empty SUV, with open containers of alcohol inside, not far from the incident, according to police.

Police identified the suspect from the SUV’s registration and arrested him at his Queen Anne home, police said. The man was booked into the King County Jail for attempted homicide and a DUI.