A trooper with the Washington State Patrol lost her life on Friday night while working at the scene of a traffic accident in Tacoma, the agency confirmed.
Details of the Incident
Trooper Tara-Marysa Guting, 29, was fatally injured just before 7:30 p.m. while investigating a two-vehicle crash on southbound State Route 509 near milepost 2, south of the Port of Tacoma. She was standing outside her patrol vehicle when she was struck.
"Individuals on scene rendered aid, but the trooper ultimately succumbed to her injuries," the agency's statement noted.
Emergency radio traffic began at 7:28 p.m. with an "officer down" alert and calls for assistance. Following the tragic event, both directions of SR 509 were closed for several hours between Interstate 705 and Port of Tacoma Road.
Official Response and Background
State Patrol Chief John Batiste expressed profound grief, stating, "The sky has poured rain on us all for the past two weeks, and with this loss, now tears flood our souls. My heartfelt condolences go out to Timothy, Tara’s extended family, her friends, her academy classmates, to District 1 Captain Gundermann, and his entire team."
Guting, originally from Hawaii, had joined the State Patrol in 2024 and was assigned to the Tacoma area's District 1. Before her law enforcement career, she served in the Army National Guard. She married her husband Timothy in 2019 at the state Fire Training Academy.
The criminal investigation into the incident has been transferred to the Tacoma Police Department, according to the Washington State Patrol.
