Seattle, Washington – An 18-year-old man faces charges in connection with a tragic crash in Renton that claimed the lives of four individuals on March 19. Chase Jones has been officially charged with four counts of Vehicular Homicide, two counts of Vehicular Assault, and one count of Reckless Driving by the King County Prosecutor’s Office.
The charges stem from a devastating collision at the intersection of South 192nd Street and 140th Avenue South in Renton, where a woman and three children lost their lives, while two other children sustained severe injuries. An additional adult in another vehicle suffered non-life-threatening injuries as a result of the crash.
Prosecutors emphasized the severity of vehicular homicides, highlighting the randomness and devastating impact they can have on families and communities. Casey McNerthney from the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office expressed the importance of holding individuals accountable for such reckless actions.
According to authorities, data retrieved from Jones’s 2015 Audi A4 indicated that he was traveling at 112 mph when the collision occurred. Shockingly, this incident marked the third time in 11 months that Jones had totaled a vehicle in a speeding crash, with his recent Audi purchase just a month prior to the fatal accident.
In response to the increasing number of similar cases, the King County prosecutor established a felony traffic unit to address and prosecute these offenses effectively. Jones is currently scheduled to be arraigned in early April, with bail set at $1 million for his charges of Vehicular Homicide, Vehicular Assault, and Reckless Driving.
The victims of the tragic crash in Renton were identified as Buster Brown, 12, Eloise Wilcoxson, 12, Matilda Wilcoxson, 13, and Andrea Hudson, 38. With the case moving forward in the legal system, authorities are determined to seek justice for the lives lost and the families impacted by this senseless tragedy.