On May 27, a woman was hit and killed by a suspected drunk driver. The suspect, who had a child in the truck at the time, remains in jail on $1 million bail.
LACEY, Wash. — Elke Howard is a retiree and volunteer who lives in a condo complex in Lacey. Her son said the community had lost a giant after a series of crashes that police said were easily preventable.
On May 27, a man took his son to a 7-11 convenience store in Laixi City to buy ice cream. The clerk later told police he thought the man was drunk.
The store clerk said the two got into a pickup truck and as they reversed out of the parking lot, the driver hit another vehicle.
The video then shows the man speeding across busy Pacific Avenue, hitting other vehicles and ultimately hitting a woman. The truck eventually came to a stop in the stairwell of an apartment building.
The 63-year-old woman, Elke Howard, died at the scene.
“It’s a tragedy,” said the woman’s son, Kay Howard. “And my mom was just sitting in the sun, enjoying the only space she had.”
The suspected driver, David Mwinyi, has pleaded not guilty to eight charges, including vehicular homicide, drink driving and reckless driving. He remains in jail on $1 million bail.
Howard said his mother enjoyed working with veterans and helping neighbors.
“I’m very frustrated,” Kay Howard said. “This was a completely avoidable accident. The perpetrator could have prevented it.”
The driver was injured but survived, police said. He later allegedly told police he drank a pint of gin before picking up his seven-year-old son from school. The boy was not injured in the accident.
Elke Howard’s family said they want him to receive the maximum sentence.
“It was pure disregard for human life. Everyone who was with my mom, everyone driving on the road, even his son in his own car,” Kay Howard said. “This is a terrible tragedy that I think could have been prevented in a lot of different ways.”
