Man pleads guilty to murder in high-speed police chase crash that killed Raytown mom
A Kansas City man has pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in a high-speed chase that killed 38-year-old Rebecca L. White of Raytown and injured her 2-year-old daughter, the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office announced Tuesday.
Miguel Ayala, 33, also pleaded guilty to resisting arrest and driving while intoxicated. Ayala led Kansas City police on a chase that reached speeds as high as 80 mph before crashing into the car driven by White on the evening of Feb. 19.
A Jackson County judge sentenced Ayala to 18 years in prison for the three felony convictions.
Kansas City police responded about 6 p.m. Feb. 19 to the 5100 block of Hedges Avenue to investigate a disturbance involving a man who was “reported to be armed and possibly intentionally striking vehicles in the area,” police said.
Arriving officers found trash and debris, including a vehicle’s bumper, in the road, according to court documents. They saw a woman in the driveway and a man, who was later identified as Ayala, in a Chevrolet Tahoe parked on the grass. The woman told police the man tried to strike her with the Tahoe.
Ayala, according to documents, then fled in the Tahoe and officers pursued after him. At points during the police chase, Ayala drove into oncoming lanes of traffic and failed to obey traffic signs. As the police chase neared the intersection of East 47th Street and Raytown Road, the man crashed into the rear of a BMW 545i being driven by White.
Ayala, White and her daughter where taken to hospitals, where White died about a week later.
White was a mother of two children who worked as an assistant manager at the IHOP in Raytown, according to her obituary.
“Her life was being a mother to Kaden and Ashlyn and the love of her family,” the obituary said. “She enjoyed shopping and had a special place in her heart for all animals. Becky’s life continues as she was an organ donor.”
She donated six organs to five recipients, according to a person who organized a gofundme fundraising page to raise money to cover funeral and medical expenses as well as create a fund for the children.
