King County prosecutors last week charged a Des Moines man with one count of vehicular assault for striking and seriously injuring 66-year-old Kenneth Manion in a south end Auburn parking lot Jan. 23.

Joseph Mark Wojciechowski 23, is being held at the Norm Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent on $1 million bail.

Prosecutors allege that Wojciechowski was under the influence of alcohol at the time.

According to court papers, Manion had been loading items into his car in the parking lot of the Donut Star in the 900 block of Auburn Way South when the northbound Wojciechowski failed to negotiate a curve and entered the parking lot.

According to court papers, Wojciechowski’s vehicle hit Manion’s vehicle on the left rear passenger door and then struck Manion, who was standing next to his driver’s side door. Hit in the legs, he was thrown over a concrete barrier before landing on his back. Both of his legs were broken, along with his elbow and nose.

Manion had gone to the store to buy some donuts for his grandchildren who had stayed at his home that night.

Firefighters arrived about 6 a.m. and found Manion lying near the entrance to the Donut Star. King County Paramedics transported him to Harborview Medical Center in stable condition.

Wojciechowski at first denied consuming any alcohol, but according to court papers, he later admitted that after six months of sobriety, he had downed one-half of a pint of vodka and swallowed a partial pill of Suboxone, which had been prescribed to him for a heroin addiction. According to court papers, he told police he did this because he had been depressed and had recently been in a fight with his girlfriend.

He also said he had only had a couple of hours of sleep the previous night.

According to court papers, Wojciechowski was convicted of robbery in 2008 and has since racked up numerous traffic violations.

Contact Auburn Reporter News reporter Robert Whale at rwhale@auburn-reporter.com or 253-833-0218, ext. 5052.

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