Baby killed in crash with car fleeing police, Indiana cops say. ‘I lost my baby girl’
A 2-month-old girl died and her 3-year-old sibling was seriously injured when a driver evading officers slammed into their car, according to Indiana police and news reports.
The Feb. 5 crash in Plainfield caused a fiery scene and the arrest of the driver accused of fleeing from Avon police officers, according to a news release from the Plainfield Police Department.
The department said officers attempted to pull over the suspect’s vehicle, but the driver fled and crashed into another car.
Inside that second car was a 2-month-old girl named Iris, who died at the scene, according to WXIN. The baby’s 3-year-old brother, Ares, suffered severe burn injuries when their vehicle became engulfed in flames.
“It’s really difficult to go through this and know that we didn’t do anything wrong,” Jack Vawter, the mother of the children. told WTHR.
Vawter’s fiancé, who was driving their children to their grandparents’ house, was also injured, WTHR reported.
The 3-year-old remained in the intensive care unit following the “horrific” crash, according to Huber & Son Construction, which employees the children’s grandfather.
Police said the driver who evaded officers was taken into custody. Charges have not been announced.
Alan Vawter said in a Facebook post the driver’s “foolish” actions cost him his granddaughter and the severe injuries to his grandson.
“They have brought joy into the hearts of everyone they have ever met,” the grandfather said.
In her interview with WTHR, Jack Vawter said “something like this happening just isn’t right.”
“I know I lost my baby girl, but I still have family left. It means everything to me,” she said.
Authorities from multiple jurisdictions continued to investigate the crash, police said.
Plainfield is about a 20-mile drive southwest from Indianapolis.
This story was originally published February 6, 2025 at 10:37 AM with the headline "Baby killed in crash with car fleeing police, Indiana cops say. ‘I lost my baby girl’."