Car plows into TJ Maxx store, injures 1

Summary

Bellevue police say the car went into the store at Bellevue's Factoria Square around 5 o'clock Friday evening and that one person inside the store suffered a minor injury.

Story Published: Sep 28, 2007 at 4:44 PM PST

Story Updated: Sep 29, 2007 at 11:37 AM PST

Car plows into TJ Maxx store, injures 1
BELLEVUE, Wash. (AP) - A driver rushing to beat someone else to a parking spot slammed into a department store Friday evening, injuring a 14-year-old girl inside the building, police said.

The girl was being treated at Overlake Hospital for scrapes and bruises, Bellevue police Cpl. Marcia Harnden said, while the driver, a 37-year-old woman from Bellevue, was arrested for investigation of driving under the influence.

"She was just racing to get in and beat the other person to the parking spot," Harnden said. "She said she stepped on the accelerator and she just couldn't get herself stopped after that."

The Lincoln sedan smashed through the automatic sliding glass doors of the T.J. Maxx and took out several clothing racks. It came to a stop 20 yards inside the store.

The driver exhibited "obvious signs of impairment," but not from alcohol, Harnden said. Toxicology results were not expected for at least a month.