Seattle driver who plowed through Black Lives Matter protest charged with vehicular homicide
The black Seattle man who drove his Jaguar into a group of protesters early Saturday morning now faces additional charges, including vehicular homicide.
The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office upgraded charges against Dawit Kelete, 27, Wednesday after one of the protesters he hit, 24-year-old Summer Taylor, died.
Kelete is now charged with vehicular homicide, vehicular assault and reckless driving and is being held on a $1.2 million bail.
Seattle protester dies after driver plows car through crowd
The Washington State Patrol and the FBI are still investigating the matter and Kelete could face additional charges, the prosecutor’s office said Wednesday.
According to police, Kelete drove up I-5 in the wrong direction “at a high rate of speed” around 1:30 a.m. Saturday, ramming his white Jaguar XJL into the protesters.
Taylor died of their injuries Saturday night, and another victim, 32-year-old Diaz Love, is still hospitalized.
“I knew, no matter how much I might want to ask them to stay safe during protests, they would just say, ‘Mom, if you’re black in this country it isn’t even safe to be alive.’ And they were right,” Dalia Taylor, Summer’s mother, told King 5.
Driver who allegedly rammed into Seattle protest, killing one, jailed on $1.2M bail
Police said Kelete did not appear to have drugs or alcohol in his system at the time of his arrest after he fled the scene.
Kelete’s lawyer called it a “horrible, horrible accident.”
“There’s absolutely nothing political about this case whatsoever,” John Henry Browne told the The Associated Press. “My client is in tears. He’s very remorseful. He feels tremendous guilt.”
Kelete is due back in court on July 22.
