Marisol Wentling mug shot (via Colorado Springs Police Department). Inset: the SUV that allegedly flipped on its side while Wentling was driving (via Facebook / KRDO).
A 19-year-old woman in Colorado has been arrested after she was allegedly filmed attempting to do “donuts” in an SUV only to lose control of the vehicle, which flipped and caused “life-threatening injuries” to several passengers who were crushed by the vehicle as it rolled. Marisol Wentling, the alleged driver of the SUV, was taken into custody over the weekend and charged with one count of vehicular assault, authorities say.
According to a news release from the Colorado Springs Police Department, officers at about 10:18 p.m. on Dec. 16 responded to a report about a “rollover traffic accident” that took place in a parking lot located in the 1600 block of South Circle Drive.
Upon arriving at the location, first responders said they learned that multiple individuals made plans to meet in the parking lot “to do donuts” in their vehicles. One of those vehicles was allegedly being driven by Wentling when the accident occurred.
“The involved vehicle was doing donuts in the parking and had five individuals hanging out the windows of the vehicle. The vehicle rolled over and onto the individuals who were hanging out the windows,” police wrote. “Due to the reckless driving multiple individuals sustained serious life-threatening injuries and were taken to local hospitals.”
Video of the accident was posted to social media and quickly went viral. The footage, which appeared in the comments of a Facebook post by Colorado Springs ABC affiliate KRDO, may be disturbing to some viewers.
The footage begins with a red SUV with five people visibly hanging out of the windows driving in reverse at a high speed for a few seconds before the driver suddenly cuts wheel to the left. The SUV spins about 180 degrees before its momentum causes the vehicle flip, with driver’s side wheels coming off the ground as the car initially lands on passenger side doors — and the two people hanging out of the passenger side windows.
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The car continues rolling onto the roof, then onto the driver’s side doors before coming to a stop. At least a dozen people then rush toward the car and begin dragging people away from the wreck. The passenger who was hanging out of the back driver’s side window appears to be pinned on the pavement by the SUV.
An employee who works for one of the businesses in the strip mall told KRDO that seeing people using the parking lot to drag race or create circles from the skids of spinning tires is nothing new.
“It seems to me, since I’ve been doing this for five years, it’s getting more and more frequent,” the Jolly Christmas Trees employee reportedly told the station. “It’s been like every third or fourth night out here, there’s somebody out here squealing tires. I see a lot of activity.”
Several people who live near the parking lot reportedly also told the station that such dangerous driving is a regular occurrence in the lot.
Authorities emphasized that the investigation into the accident remains ongoing. Anyone who witnessed the crash or has information relevant to the case is being urged to call police at (719) 444-7000 or contact Crime Stoppers anonymous tip line, which can be reached at (719) 634-7867 or 1-800-222-8477.
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