Tacoma, WASH. — Police say they’ve located and impounded a vehicle of interest from Friday’s fatal collision which killed WSP Trooper Tara-Marysa Guting.
Police initially reported they believed the vehicle was either a four-door Chevrolet Avalanche or a Cadillac Escalade EXT-style pickup.
Tacoma PD says Guting, 29, was struck by a vehicle while investigating an unrelated collision on the on-ramp to southbound SR-509 from Port of Tacoma Road last Friday around 7:30 p.m. The initial impact caused the trooper to be thrown into the far right lane, where she was incapacitated. Police say a short time later, a dark-colored pickup truck struck the trooper but it continued driving and didn’t stop. It’s not clear if they have found the driver yet.
Anyone who witnessed the collision or may have dash-camera footage from southbound SR-509 near Port of Tacoma Road between approximately 7:20 and 7:30 p.m. is urged to contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS.
The death marked the 34th line-of-duty death in the agency’s history.
Guting began her career with WSP as a trooper cadet in January 2024 and graduated with the 119th Trooper Basic Training Class on Oct. 30, 2024, the WSP said. She served in WSP District 1 in Tacoma.
The trooper’s death deeply affected the WSP community, particularly her husband Timothy, who serves as a deputy state fire marshal at the WSP Fire Training Academy in North Bend, according to the agency.
Guting was born July 19, 1996, to Russell and Cheryl Hirata in Honolulu, Hawaii. She graduated from Mililani High School in Hawaii in May 2014 and enlisted in the Army National Guard in October 2014, where she served as a signal intelligence analyst for eight years until October 2022.
She married Timothy on Aug. 21, 2019, at the Fire Training Academy, according to the patrol.
“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,” WSP Chief John R. Batiste said in a statement following her death. “We will never forget Badge #720 – Trooper Tara-Marysa Guting.”
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