‘Once-in-a-lifetime soul’: Three who died in Pierce Co. crash identified
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Three people died in a high-speed June 19 crash on Military Road East in Spanaway.
- Medical examiners identified Maurice Donnelle Brooks, Keanae Kelly Omoto, and Janet.
- Investigators found numerous empty alcohol containers and believe alcohol was a factor.
Three people who died in a high-speed crash in Spanaway last week have been identified.
According to the Pierce County Medical Examiner’s public portal, the driver was a 48-year-old man named Maurice Donnelle Brooks of Tacoma, while the 37-year-old woman in the back passenger seat was Keanae Mahealani Kaanapu Kelly Omoto of Puyallup.
The King County Medical Examiner’s Office has identified Janet Linkee of Seattle as the 53-year-old woman in the front passenger seat.
The crash happened in the 400 block of Military Road East at about 8:30 p.m. on June 19, The News Tribune previously reported.
In a Monday Facebook post, the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office said Brooks was driving at high speed and tried to avoid colliding with a man mowing his front lawn. Brooks then tried to correct himself and ended up leaving the roadway and hitting a tree.
The car split in half upon impact, the post said. Brooks and Kelly Omoto were found dead at the scene, while Linkee was transported to the hospital in life-threatening condition.
Carly Cappetto, spokesperson for the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office, told The News Tribune on Tuesday that Linkee later died at the hospital.
“There were numerous empty alcohol containers in the wreckage,” the post said. “It is believed alcohol was a factor in this collision.”
‘[She] was a once-in-a-lifetime soul’
Kelly Omoto’s family posted a GoFundMe on June 21, asking the public for help raising funds for funeral, memorial and transportation expenses.
“Keanae Mahealani Ka‘anapu Kelly Omoto was a once-in-a-lifetime soul. She was the kind of person who could light up any room simply by walking into it. She was always smiling, always willing to make a new friend, and always finding ways to bring joy to the people around her,” the post said. “It was her gift. In our ‘ohana, among her friends, and in every space she entered, she carried a strong, loving spirit that made everyone feel so welcomed and cared for. Everyone who knew Keanae loved her, and anyone fortunate enough to meet her was better for it.”
In the fundraiser, her family said the funds will help them transport Kelly Omoto to Hawaii to be near her loved ones. The fundraiser does not say where in Hawaii, though the organizer’s location is listed as Wahiawā.
“Keanae was a backseat passenger in that vehicle. She was not behind the wheel. She did not make the decisions that led to that crash. She did not choose the speed, the risk, or the actions that followed. She was an innocent passenger whose life was taken in an instant because of choices that were entirely beyond her control,” the post said. “...As we navigate this loss, we are asking for support to help cover funeral, memorial, and transportation expenses so that we can honor her final journey and lay her to rest in her beloved home, Hawai‘i, surrounded by the love of her ‘ohana and the place that will always be a part of her.”
As of 7:50 a.m. on Thursday, the fundraiser had raised $2,540 of its $9,000 goal.
The News Tribune could not find fundraisers for Brooks or Linkee.
