FEDERAL WAY, Wash. — A routine traffic stop ended in tragedy after a woman slammed into a tree trying to escape police with her young son inside the car.
The driver died at the scene but the boy survived.
The crash happened just before 10 a.m. Sunday on 1st Avenue South near South 342nd Street in Federal Way.
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The victim's father confirmed she was Kimberly Winslow, and the young boy was her son.
A lot of people heard what happened to his daughter at the nearby Panther Lake Apartments. Neighbors rushed out to help and saw that a Honda Fit had collided with a tree.
The wreckage from a crash that ended in tragedy greeted neighbors as they came outside their homes to see what caused the noise.
"And I just walk out and holy Jesus, there's like firetrucks, a few ambulances, the red ones, and some cop cars," said Gabrieol Immanuel, 15.
Gabrieol said he initially thought something was on fire. Then, he saw the vehicle.
"And then I heard from some people that - I'm not sure if they're rumors or not -- but how the car was like out of control and it crashed into a tree," he said, "and the person might have died."
Federal Way police confirm the rumors are true.
They say an officer spotted a woman driving recklessly and fast, more than twice the posted 35-mile-per-hour speed limit. An officer tried to pull her over, but she sped off, made a U-turn, then lost control and slammed into a tree.
"Talking to the police apparently the crash had been very severe," said Hosea Immanuel, Gabrieol's dad. "And she was stuck inside the vehicle."
Immanuel, a Federal Way city employee, came out to see if he could help.
He said he saw a 9-year-old boy, who had been in the car, walking around, traumatized. But nothing could be done to save the 41-year-old driver.
"So they covered the car as soon as they could," he said.
It made for a very sad start to this Thanksgiving week.
"Really bad," said Gabriela Lopez, a neighbor. "And especially in these days, you know. It's coming the holidays. So it's really, really bad for her family."
The victim's father said they are a private family and said he's not likely to ever want to talk about this incident again. He said they are now trying to take care of their grandson who lost his mother.
Cox Media Group
