Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson called for all flags to be lowered on Saturday, Dec. 27, in honor of Washington State Patrol Trooper Tara-Marysa Guting.
OLYMPIA, Wash. — Flags will be lowered across Washington state on Saturday to honor the life of Washington State Patrol (WSP) Trooper Tara-Marysa Guting, who was killed on Dec. 19 in the line of duty.
Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson ordered flags be lowered on Saturday, Dec. 27 at all state agency facilities until close of business or sunset.
Ferguson said he is “deeply saddened” by Guting’s death.
On the night of Dec. 19, Trooper Guting responded to a collision along state Route 509 near Port of Tacoma Road. She was struck by a vehicle while standing outside of her patrol car, thrown into another lane of traffic, and hit by a second vehicle, according to WSP.
The second vehicle fled the scene. The suspected vehicle was impounded on Tuesday, but the driver remains on the run, according to the Tacoma Police Department, the agency handling the investigation.
Guting, 29, was born in Honolulu and graduated from Mililani High School. She joined WSP after serving eight years in the Army National Guard as a signals intelligence analyst. She graduated from the patrol academy in 2024 and was assigned to Tacoma.
Trooper Guting is the 34th member of the Washington State Patrol to die in the line of duty in the agency’s 105-year history.
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