Rookie officer killed in crash with felon

For more than a decade, Neal Kelley disregarded the law and law-enforcement officers.

When he was pulled over for speeding in a stolen Honda in 2002, Kelley dragged an officer along a street when the officer reached into the car. The officer suffered minor injuries.

In 2003, Kelley rammed a police cruiser with a stolen Dodge Durango before he was shot twice by a King County sheriff's deputy.

Early Monday morning, witnesses saw Kelley speeding in another stolen Honda in Seattle's Interbay neighborhood. He slammed into a car driven by rookie Seattle police Officer Beth Nowak, killing both of them instantly.

Nowak, 30, who had been on her patrol beat less than two weeks, was driving her personal car on her way to work at the department's East Precinct when the crash occurred at 2:35 a.m.

Nowak was driving on West Prospect Street at 2:35 a.m. when her BMW was broadsided as she turned onto Elliott Avenue West, according to Seattle police. A passenger in the Honda, identified as Melissa Nelson, was in intensive care at Harborview Medical Center. Nelson's injuries are not believed to be life-threatening, according to a hospital spokeswoman.

The King County Medical Examiner's Office identified the Honda driver as Kelley. According to the state Department of Corrections (DOC), Kelley, 35, had a lengthy criminal history that included theft, car theft, possession of stolen property, assault, attempting to elude police and malicious mischief. He had been in and out of prison since 1993 and had been released from prison most recently in January.

At the time of his death, Kelley was wanted for failing to meet with his community corrections officer.

Nowak's death was a blow to a police department still mourning the loss of an officer under chillingly similar circumstances.

Three months earlier, on Aug. 13, East precinct Officer Joselito Barber, 26, was killed by a speeding driver in Seattle's Central Area. Mary Jane Rivas was just 10 days out of prison and wanted on arrest warrants for prostitution, drunken driving, malicious mischief and two thefts when her car collided with Barber's police cruiser. She has pleaded not guilty to vehicular homicide and cocaine possession.

"Joselito was first-watch East [precinct] and so was Beth," said Rich O'Neill, president of the Seattle Police Officer's Guild. "It's the same unit so it's very strange, and they were such new officers."

After Monday's crash, witnesses said the Honda had been speeding without its headlights on, according to police. The car had been stolen from outside a South Seattle Starbucks on Sunday, police said.

In the 2002 incident, Kelley was spotted speeding on Interstate 5, according to court documents. He wove through traffic and struck cars in another stolen Honda, according to paperwork filed in King County Superior Court. When the car slowed, a police officer tried to grab the gearshift and Kelley dragged the officer along.

Kelly pleaded guilty to assault, taking a motor vehicle without permission and attempting to elude a police officer in this case. The officer suffered minor injuries.

In 2003, Kelley was shot twice by a King County sheriff's deputy after he was caught in another stolen vehicle, this time outside a Seattle school, court papers say. Kelley ran the stolen Dodge Durango into a tree and into a police cruiser before he was shot in the hand and shoulder.

He pleaded guilty to assault in this case and was given a Drug Offender Sentencing Alternative (DOSA) — a reduced prison sentence in exchange for drug treatment.

Kelley was released from prison Jan. 30 for assault and vehicle theft. He was supposed to be on probation until June 5, 2008.

"He was a habitual offender with over 20 felony convictions and a number of other arrests," Seattle police Sgt. Deanna Nollette said. "He should not have been on the streets."

Nowak was hired by Seattle police after leaving the Racine, Wis., Police Department on May 19 after five years there, said Racine police Sgt. Steven Madsen.

Nowak's older sister, Cheryl, said Nowak left Racine because she felt there were more opportunities for a female officer to advance in Seattle.

"She was happy with the job; she was still very homesick," Cheryl Nowak said.

Cheryl Nowak said the Seattle Police Department will hold a funeral Thursday for her sister, but a police spokesman said he didn't have any funeral details Monday night.

Jennifer Sullivan: 206-464-8294 or jensullivan@seattletimes.com

Seattle Times staff reporter Natalie Singer contributed to this report.