1 of 2 protesters hit by motorist on closed Seattle highway dies

SEATTLE — Authorities say a man drove a car onto a closed freeway and into a crowd of protesters, killing one person and critically injuring another.

Twenty-four-year-old Summer Taylor of Seattle died in the evening at Harborview Medical Center.

Officials say Taylor and Diaz Love, 32, of Portland, Oregon, were hit by the motorist who barreled through a panicked crowd of protesters on Interstate 5 early Saturday morning. The man was arrested and charged with two counts of vehicular assault.

Police say a Seattle man drove the car around vehicles that were blocking I-5 and sped into the crowd about 1:40 a.m.

Video taken at the scene by protesters showed people shouting “Car! Car!” before fleeing the roadway.

Seattle has been the site of prolonged unrest following the May 25 police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.