A Washington deputy used his personal dagger on a truck driver 17 times during a DUI stop — and the officer-worn cameras went dark for the two minutes that matter most. Now there’s a $27 million claim, a 76-page state report, and a prosecutor who still hasn’t decided anything.
The stop
May 7, 2025. Clark County Deputy Bryson Layton stopped Marc Fogle, a 54-year-old truck driver, after a one-car collision — a suspected DUI stop at the Washington State Patrol weigh station in Ridgefield, on I-5 near the Port of Entry. It was 11:29 at night. Fogle was in the breath-testing room a minute later, blowing into the DataMaster.
What the cameras recorded after that comes from the state’s own timeline. At 11:34, Layton takes hold of Fogle’s jacket. The stop turns physical. And at 11:54, per the investigation report, Layton tells Fogle he’s reaching for the deputy’s gun: “Marc, you’re gonna get shot.” Fogle answers: “Yeah. That’s what I want.”
What Layton reached for instead was a blade. His own — a fixed-blade dagger in a waistband sheath, not an issued weapon. He used it on Fogle 17 times. His duty pistol stayed holstered — about a dozen rounds were documented scattered on the floor, never fired. The Taser on his belt was never used either. By 11:58 the camera feed blurred, then went near-black for roughly two minutes. When it’s over, medics are working in the doorway. Marc Fogle did not survive.
The report
The Washington Office of Independent Investigations released a 76-page public report — and it’s where every photo in our video comes from. The dagger with the forensic ruler. The duty belt with the unused Taser. The evidence map with numbered markers. The dark frames at 11:58.
Layton gave a compelled statement — admissible in admin and civil proceedings, but not criminal court. In it, he said he was afraid for his life and had “no other viable force option”: his Taser 10 has no drive-stun mode, he doesn’t carry pepper spray, and he hoped using the knife would stop Fogle from reaching for the gun. The family’s claim tells a different story: the Taser was on his vest the whole time, and the dagger wasn’t authorized equipment at all.
Four minutes after midnight, the state’s independent investigations office was notified — about 40 minutes after the encounter.
The $27 million claim
On September 17, Fogle’s family filed a $27 million tort claim against Clark County — wrongful death and excessive force, with attorneys Mark Lindquist and Angus Lee. It alleges some of the 17 wounds were to Fogle’s back, that the Taser was available and unused, and that the dagger was unauthorized. The claim is the required step before a civil lawsuit — expect that filing next.
Lindquist’s statement zeroes in on the same two minutes everyone else is asking about: the muting or shutting down of the officer-worn cameras, he says, “raises serious questions that need to be answered.” Layton’s account says Fogle’s sweatshirt blocked the lens. The county isn’t talking, citing the litigation.
What we don’t know
The prosecutor’s charging decision is still pending — the OII delivered its report for exactly that call. Layton’s employment status hasn’t been stated publicly since a July report that he faced review. And nobody outside that room knows whether any recording of the missing two minutes exists at all.
What we’re watching
Charges, no charges, or a civil suit — this case moves next at the prosecutor’s desk, and we’ll update this story the same day it does.
The video is on our YouTube channel — look up Oh Dang Really.
Sources: Washington Office of Independent Investigations 76-page case report (public release); The Columbian; Oregon Public Broadcasting; KPTV; KATU; KIRO 7. Evidence photos: Washington State Office of Independent Investigations case report.
