One person has been killed and another injured after a man drove his car into Black Lives Matter protesters in Washington. 24-year-old Summer Taylor and 32-year-old Diaz Love were marching on a closed stretch of Interstate in Seattle when the incident took place.
The two women were struck in the early morning hours of Saturday, July 4th. Troopers and personnel from the Washington State Department of Transportation had used their vehicles to block on-ramps.
At around 1:30am, a white car gained access to the roadway. The vehicle swerved around two vehicles positioned as a barrier, before driving through the protesters. The vehicle struck both Summer and Diaz and sent them flying into the air.
#SeattleProtests – Protesters take 5 minutes of silence to observe Summer Taylor’s passing. Phone lights are on and flowers passed out. #WestlakePark pic.twitter.com/9UTKMSeOQr
— Omari Salisbury (@Omarisal) July 5, 2020
The driver, 27-year-old Dawit Kelete, continued driving for about two miles before authorities were able to stop him. Summer and Diaz were taken to Harborview Medical Center, where Summer passed away.
The latest update from the Seattle Times indicated that Diaz was still in serious condition. Diaz had been livestreaming the march for two hours ahead of the incident, but the stream ended abruptly at the time of the incident.
Kelete was booked into King County Jail on investigation of felony vehicular assault. A probable cause statement quoted by the Associated Press said that Kelete ‘asked if the injured pedestrians were okay.’
As a result of the incident, State Patrol announced it would no longer allow protesters on the interstate.
This article is comprised of information and media from the Associated Press, Bloomberg and the Seattle Times.
