Recently-graduated WSP Trooper hit and killed while responding to crash in Tacoma
Dec 20, 2025, 5:20 AM | Updated: Dec 21, 2025, 3:58 pm
Trooper Tara-Marysa Guting, 29, was killed Friday night in Tacoma. (Courtesy Washington State Patrol via KIRO-7)
(Courtesy Washington State Patrol via KIRO-7)
UPDATE AT 3:30 p.m. Sunday:
The Tacoma Police Department issued a news release that indicates Trooper Guting was likely struck by two vehicles. It’s believed the first impact left her lying in the roadway on southbound SR 509, where she was struck by a second vehicle. They are seeking help identifying the second vehicle and have released photos. They are looking for a large, dark-colored SUV, possibly a Chevy Avalanche or a Cadillac Escalade. It may have tinted windows, chrome door handles and chrome running boards. Anyone who witnessed the collision or observed the vehicle of interest near southbound SR 509 in the area of Port of Tacoma Rd. around 7:20 pm to 7:30 pm Friday evening should contact investigators.
This Tacoma Police Dept. on Sunday afternoon released this image of a dark-colored SUV that may have been involved in the death of Washington State Trooper Tara Marysa Guting. (Photo: Tacoma Police Dept.)
TACOMA, Wash. — The Tacoma Police Department is investigating the death of a Washington State Trooper who was hit and killed while responding to a crash on SR 509 in Tacoma Friday night.
The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) reported a crash around 7:36 p.m. near Port of Tacoma Road and I-705.
Around that time, Washington State Patrol (WSP) confirmed to KIRO 7 that there had been a “critical incident” involving a trooper but did not specify what had happened.
