Chase David Jones of Renton, Washington id as speeding teen driver who ran red light at 112mph killing a mother and three children. Crash marked teen’s 3rd speeding crash in 11 months.
A Washington state teenager has been accused of causing a car crash that killed three children and a mother earlier this week. The crash in Renton marked the teen’s third speeding crash in the past year.
Chase Daniel Jones was charged with four counts of vehicular homicide, two counts of vehicular assault and one count of reckless driving following Tuesday’s crash.
The teen was being held on $1 million bond according to the King County Prosecutor’s Office.
Victims strewn along the road
Jones was allegedly traveling at 112 mph when he collided with a van near the intersection of South 192nd Street and 140th Avenue South in Renton, resulting in a three-car pileup, FOX13 reported.
So violent was the crash, victims were ejected from vehicles and their bodies strewn along the road, KOMO News reported.
Andrea Hudson, 38, died in the crash along with children of close friends — 13-year-old Matilda Wilcoxson, 12-year-old Eloise Wilcoxson and 12-year-old Boyd Buster Brown — who were passengers in her car. Two of Hudson’s children were injured and remained hospitalized.
‘When you’re driving, think of the people around you,’ the girls’ father, Chace Wilcoxson, told the Seattle Times.
‘When you’re tempted to speed, think of Andrea. When you’re tempted to grab your phone while you’re driving, think of my beautiful girls, Matilda and Eloise. When you’re trying to make the light, remember Buster Brown.’
Fatal intersection
All four victims died from ‘multiple blunt force injuries,’ according to the King County Medical Examiner’s Office.
Hudson’s children, Nolan and Charlotte, who survived the crash, suffered brain bleeds, internal injuries and broken bones and taken to Harborview Medical Center.
As of Friday, Nolan was in critical condition while Charlotte was in serious condition in the ICU, according to spokeswoman Susan Gregg.
An adult in a third car, which was hit on in the collision, sustained minor injuries.
Chase Daniel Jones was treated for an internal injury that required surgery as well as a fractured leg and ribs. He has since been released.
Wilcoxson, speaking for the families, called on authorities to investigate the intersection where the crash took place to prevent a similar accident from happening in the future.
‘These are not the first fatalities that happened here in recent months and years. With help, they can be the last,’ he said.
At a memorial held Thursday, neighbor neighbor Jacqueline Galvan echoed the parent’s sentiments, explaining something needs to be done at the county level to make 140th Avenue SE safer.
‘It’s senseless. This road has seen so many tragic accidents in the last couple years. This could have been avoided,’ Galvan stated.
‘You just have to wonder how many more people are going to have to get injured or killed before somebody does something,’ added neighbor David Lee, who said his mother was injured in a crash along 140th years ago.
Grieving families remember victims
The speeding teen’s 2015 Audi A4 had been purchased just a month before the deadly collision. According to court documents, it was the third vehicle Jones had totaled in a speeding crash in the last 11 months.
Andrea Hudson, who led a homeschooling group, was carpooling Tuesday afternoon with the five children when she passed through the intersection and was T-boned by Jones, according to court documents.
Court documents stated Jones had been driving erratically, speeding and ‘weaving around other traffic.’ Data from the teen’s car showed he was traveling 112 mph when he ran a red light at the intersection ‘at full throttle without braking.’
Prosecutors described the collision as ‘incredibly violent,‘ noting that all four victims died instantly.
Matilda and Eloise Wilcoxson are survived by four siblings with a little sister on the way.
History of felony incidents
Speaking to the Seattle Times, Rivka Mikkelsen Wilcoxson described her daughters as ‘inseparable.’
‘I can’t talk about it in the past tense because I know they’re still around,’ she said. ‘The only consolation is I know they would want to be together.’
The grieving mother shared a selfie of the trio to Facebook, writing, ‘It has been the great privilege of my life to be a mother to these beautiful girls.’
The sisters were close friends with Buster Brown, whose father, Jaron Brown, described him as ‘the sweetest kid.’
Hudson’s family is accepting donations on GoFundMe for the children’s hospital bills and Andrea’s funeral.
All four victims were involved in the Renton School District’s H.O.M.E. program, an alternative learning system. The district plans to have grief counselors on site for other students.
Increasing traffic fatalities through out Washington State
The wreck was the first crash at the intersection this year, following two in 2023, according to data from the Washington State Department of Transportation.
The Washington Traffic Safety Commission reported 809 traffic fatalities throughout the state in 2023.
If the total number of deaths surpasses 825, it will become the year with the highest number of traffic fatalities since 1981.
‘When you look at homicide cases, the most random types of homicides are vehicle homicides, not just in King County, but across Washington state,’ Casey McNerthney with the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office told KIRO 7.
‘Reckless driving is one of the charges that was filed. And that is an important one to get before the court.’
He added the prosecutor’s office created a felony traffic unit last year in response to the increase in cases.
Jones who remained held on $1 million bond is scheduled to appear appear in court on April 4.
Renton is a city in King County, Washington, United States, and an inner-ring suburb of Seattle.
