Beloved 80-year-old dog walker killed in carjacking while defending her dogs

SEATTLE — A beloved 80-year-old dog walker was killed during a carjacking in a Seattle neighborhood while trying to defend her and her client’s pets.

Police responded to reports of a carjacking in the Madison Valley neighborhood at about 10 a.m. Tuesday and found a bystander performing CPR on a woman in the middle of the street, Seattle police Detective Eric Munoz said in blotter post. The woman was pronounced dead at the scene.

Friends identified her as Ruth Dalton, owner of Grandma’s Critter Care, The Seattle Times reported.

Witness Laura Dynan told the newspaper that she was in her house when she heard the sound of screeching tires. She came out and saw Dalton outside her car, struggling against someone inside. Dynan said many people came to the woman’s aid, including one person with a baseball bat. The attacker then backed over Dalton and sped away.

“He did not need to back up,” she said. “This woman was fighting for other people’s dogs and her own dog in this car. Like it wasn’t about the car. It was about the dogs.”

Police received a report Tuesday afternoon from Seattle Animal Control that a dead dog was found in a park about 5 miles (8 kilometers) south of Madison Valley, Munoz said. Officers responded and found Dalton’s stolen vehicle nearby.

Seattle police planned to hold a press conference Wednesday afternoon to share more details about the case and the search for the suspect.