A teen driver charged with killing a mom and three kids by racing through a red light at 112mph was involved in two other major crashes in suburban Seattle — with bodycam footage showing a cop telling him to “learn” his lesson after he admitted speeding during his first accident.
Chase Jones, 18, has been booked on charges of vehicular homicide, vehicular assault, and reckless driving for the crash on Tuesday last week that killed mom Andrea Hudson, 38, and her kids Matilda Wilcoxson, 13, and 12-year-olds Boyd Buster Brown and Eloise Wilcoxson.
Two of her other children survived but remain in intensive care.
The teen was driving an Audi A4 — which he got just a month earlier — at 122mph in a 40mph zone when the four family members were “immediately killed” in the “incredibly violent collision,” according to court documents obtained by KOMO News.
Before the deadly smash, Jones had already been in two other accidents, according to court documents obtained by the outlet, which shared bodycam footage of him admitting to speeding during the first in May.
“I saw an open road. I was definitely going above the speed limit of 25,” Jones said of the speed limit where he was pulled over in Kent.
When a police officer asked him how fast he thought he was going, Jones replied, “40 or 50.”
A cop was heard saying: “He told me he was speeding down the street … that dude was hauling.”
The other driver involved in the crash said he was turning into the road when Jones’ vehicle approached at high speed.
“By the time I got out there, there was just a pair of lights, and they were going so fast, I tried to put it in reverse and get backwards, but by the time I got in reverse to go backwards it was already gone,” the driver told cops.
The officer gave Jones a warning, saying: “It’s a mistake, mistakes happen. Lessons need to be learned, as long as you learn it.”
The other accident he was involved in happened in January, KOMO reported, citing court records.
Jones “totaled another vehicle,” with the other driver complaining he had “not seen” the teen driver “due to (Jones’) speed,” prosecutors wrote, according to the outlet.
“In both of these crashes, (Jones’) parents were at the crash prior to the police.”
In the latest crash, two of Hudson’s kids — Nolan, 14, and Charlotte, 12 — who also were in the minivan were hospitalized and remain in intensive care.
Jones, who also was badly injured, was allegedly driving as fast as 112 mph in the newly purchased Audi with no signs of braking on a road where the speed limit is 40 mph.
He was charged with four counts of vehicular homicide, two counts of vehicular assault and reckless driving.
Despite the serious charges and the tragic loss of life, the grieving families said they have forgiven Jones.
“We try to follow the teachings of Jesus Christ. We believe in unconditional forgiveness and we pray and we plead for you to pray for the young man who caused this terrible accident and pray for his family,” the sisters’ dad, Chase Wilcoxson, told the Kent Reporter.
“God loves him and we want the best for him,” he said.
The families were all members of a “homeschooling co-op,” according to the outlet.
“There are no words to express the grief, the pain that we feel,” Wilcoxson said. “Four bright lights are missing from the world and it feels cold and dark. The wounds that we feel will eventually heal and the scars will remain for the rest of our lives.”
Mom Rivka Wilcoxson talked about their daughters’ hobbies and love for one another.
“Matilda was an avid plant enthusiast and bookworm, and El loved to play fiddle tunes on her violin and go running with her bestie, Buster,” she told the Kent Reporter. “They were inseparable in life.”
Jaron Brown said he felt “so lucky” to be Buster’s dad.
“He was one of the most fun-loving, adventure-some kids,” he told the outlet. “Him and his older brother were just inseparable. You know, we mountain bike together, play basketball all the time […] As fun and lively as Buster was and as competitive as he was at sports, he was also just honestly the sweetest kid.”
Hudson’s sister, Melanie Hanes, described the tragic mom as a “calm, patient, selfless” person.
“We just are going to miss the void of this sweet, strong woman and sister,” she said.
