Driver Charged After Plowing Through Seattle Protesters, Killing One And Injuring Another

The 27-year-old man, who was arrested for allegedly driving his vehicle into Black Lives Matter protesters in Seattle, was charged after one demonstrator was killed and another seriously injured.

Dawit Kelete was charged with vehicular homicide, vehicular assault and reckless driving Wednesday, July 8, following the incident on Interstate 5 in Seattle over the weekend.

Police said Kelete drove his white 2013 Jaguar XJL onto a closed section of the Interstate around 1:40 a.m. Saturday. According to ABC News, surveillance video showed Kelete's luxury vehicle speeding down the freeway while swerving around cars that were supporting the protesters.

Kelete's reckless driving caused him to hit 24-year-old Summer Taylor and 32-year-old Diaz Love. Both were part of a group of Black Femme March demonstrators that showed up on the Interstate as they continue to protest against racial inequality and police violence, said the Associated Press.

Taylor, a resident of Seattle and a veterinary clinic worker, was pronounced dead at a local hospital hours after the incident, while Love suffered multiple leg and arm fractures and remained at the hospital for at least four days after the horrific crash, according to ABC News in a separate article, citing charging documents.

The crash knocked both protesters into the air, over the roof of the vehicle and onto the pavement. Charging documents added that Kelete allegedly did not slow down as he approached the Interstate's shoulder, the area where Taylor and Diaz were hit.

State police also told the network that Kelete continued to drive south. He was chased by another demonstrator in a car for about a mile where he managed to overtake Kelete. However, he was able to drive around the protester's car and kept going.

Authorities said Seattle police and Washington state police were able to locate Kelete's vehicle and pulled it over. It had heavy front-end damage and a shattered windshield. He was given field sobriety tests and volunteered to take a Breathalyzer test at the scene. Court documents later pointed out that Kelete was “not impaired” and was “sullen throughout his time in custody.”

“At one point, he asked if the injured pedestrians were okay,” said the document, adding that a substance that “appears similar to crystal methamphetamine” was recovered from Kelete's car and was also pending testing.

A judge set Kelete's bail it $1.2 million Monday. He is set to enter a plea at his arraignment on July 22, said ABC News.