Ann Arbor Passenger Killed After Running Onto M-14 During Argument

Overview

• A 45-year-old Ann Arbor woman who was a passenger in a Ford Explorer was struck and killed after exiting the moving vehicle and running into westbound M-14 near Wagner Road, an incident troopers say occurred around 11 p.m. on Aug. 2.
• Michigan State Police say the two women had been drinking at a restaurant before the trip and that the passenger opened the car door during an argument and ran into traffic.
• The 32-year-old driver of the Explorer checked on the victim, left the scene, later told troopers she had panicked, and investigators determined she was intoxicated while driving.
• The vehicle that struck the pedestrian was a Jeep Compass whose driver initially told officers he thought he had hit a deer; police say he was not impaired but accounts differ about whether he was injured.
• Troopers will submit their investigation to the Washtenaw County Prosecutor’s Office for possible charges including operating while intoxicated and leaving the scene and the case remains under active review, a step that could lead to formal criminal charges and wider scrutiny of late-night freeway pedestrian hazards.