Ferndale woman killed in Skagit County wreck

A Ferndale woman died Saturday, Dec. 12, of injuries received a day earlier in a Skagit County wreck.

Venessa V. James, 44, was not wearing a seat belt when her 2004 Chevrolet Aveo rear-ended a 2009 Lexus stopped at a light on eastbound Highway 20 approaching La Conner-Whitney Road about 4:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 11, said Washington State Patrol Trooper Heather Axtman.

James was unresponsive at the scene, and was flown by helicopter to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, where she died the next day, Axtman said. Axtman said James was believed to be under the influence of alcohol.

Axtman said the Lexus that James rear-ended was pushed into a 2006 Ford Explorer. Axtman didn’t have access to a full report on the collision, so it was unknown if others were injured.

This story was originally published December 13, 2015 at 2:37 PM with the headline "Ferndale woman killed in Skagit County wreck."