One protester has died and another is in serious condition after a driver sped onto a closed Seattle freeway and struck them during a demonstration against police brutality early Saturday, according to the Washington State Patrol.
The patrol said the driver, a Seattle man named Dawit, went around vehicles blocking Interstate 5 and drove into the crowd. Video shared online shows a white Jaguar speeding toward the protesters. Dawit tried to leave the scene, but another protester followed the car and blocked it with his own vehicle until troopers arrived, State Trooper Chase Van Cleave said.
Dawit was booked into the King County jail on two counts of vehicular assault, and bail was denied. Troopers said they did not yet know whether the crash was targeted, and the investigation is ongoing.
The victims, Summer, 24, and Diaz, 32, were rushed to Harborview Medical Center. Summer died Saturday evening. Diaz remains in the intensive care unit, hospital spokesperson Susan Gregg said.
According to the Associated Press, Diaz was streaming the Black Femme March on Facebook Live. The video ends with shouts of “Car!” and the sound of impact. Earlier in the weekend, Diaz had written online about being worried for the safety of protesters and planned to keep streaming anyway.
Some protesters said on Twitter that police left a freeway ramp open and that the driver may not have acted alone. Those claims were not confirmed in the State Patrol’s statements.
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