A woman died Sunday after a car plowed into the recently occupied “No-Go Zone” in Uptown Minneapolis, near Lake St. and Girard where a wanted man, Winston Smith, was shot by police. The car drove into a group of protesters in the street shortly before midnight.
Deona Marie Knajdek (pictured above) was pronounced dead at the scene and three others were injured by the vehicle, with two reportedly in critical condition.
The motive is still unknown. As reported by The Minnesota Sun, the police are investigating the situation. According to the Insider, “drugs and alcohol may have played a role in the crash.”
Knajdek’s mother spoke out about the situation. Her mother said that she had spent the last 10 days of her life protesting the death of Winston Smith. She was becoming a “leader” for the movement.
A witness to her death, Ty Henderson, shared with CBS Minnesota that he saw the car drive into the protesters and hit Knajdek. He said that the protesters had to dive out of the way in order to avoid being hit.
Another witness to the event said that the man who was driving the vehicle got out and started running. The protesters caught him and pinned him down until the police could arrive. The witness went on to say that when police arrived to detain the driver, the protesters were met with aggression.
Knajdek’s mother went on to say that this was “no time for anger” and that her daughter wouldn’t want them to be angry at the driver of the car. She said that she wants forgiveness and justice, not only for her daughter but for people like Smith.
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Hayley Tschetter is a reporter with The Minnesota Sun | Star News Network and The College Fix. She graduated with a degree in Communications from the University of Northwestern-St. Paul. Send news tips to [email protected].
