Authorities in Oklahoma have arrested a 37-year-old woman who allegedly forced her husband’s vehicle off the road after becoming angry that he was speaking with another woman.
Tamara Lachelle Wood has been charged with second-degree murder and reckless driving in connection with the death of her husband, 40-year-old Justin Wood. According to a probable cause affidavit obtained by Law&Crime, officers with the Seminole Lighthorse Police Department responded around 3:30 p.m. on Sept. 27 to a two-vehicle crash in the 12000 block of Highway 59.
When officers arrived, they found a heavily damaged 2005 BMW SUV that appeared to have rolled over. Next to the vehicle was Justin Wood, who “showed no signs of life” and was pronounced dead at the scene. A second vehicle, a 2007 Volvo XC-90, had minor damage to its right front bumper.
The Volvo’s driver, identified as Tamara Wood, told Oklahoma Highway Patrol troopers that she and her husband had been driving “really fast” — estimating they were both going “ninety something,” according to the affidavit. She claimed Justin “slammed on his brakes,” causing her to collide with his SUV, which then rolled multiple times and ejected him. She told investigators the two had argued at their son’s basketball game after she found out he had been talking to another woman and that she was trying to catch up to him so they could talk.
Witnesses told investigators that Tamara had been following closely behind Justin’s SUV and that “she was just bumper-to-bumper with him” shortly before the crash. One witness estimated the vehicles may have been traveling as fast as 100 mph.
Troopers later spoke with Justin Wood’s mother, who said her son and Tamara shared four children but were separated and that he was considering filing for divorce. She recounted a phone call from her son on the day of the crash.
“Momma, she’s trying to run me off the road! She’s trying to run me off the road! Momma! Momma! Momma!” she recalled him saying.
She then heard the sound of “metal scraping” followed by a crash, according to the affidavit.
Officers also interviewed two of the couple’s children, who confirmed that their mother had been upset that their father was exchanging text messages with another woman. Tamara allegedly caused “a scene” inside the gym, prompting Justin to walk outside and leave in his SUV. She followed him in her own vehicle, investigators said.
The crash has now left the couple’s four children without their father and with a mother facing serious criminal charges.
“He’s the best dad that I could ever ask for,” their 13-year-old son, Wyatt Wood, told local ABC affiliate KOCO. “He’s the reason I am the way I am and the reason I play sports and love basketball.”
The District 22 District Attorney’s Office issued an arrest warrant for Tamara Wood on Friday. She was taken into custody Tuesday afternoon, KOCO reported. Jail records show she is being held by the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office.
“We’re going to hold her responsible for her actions that resulted in the death of her husband,” District Attorney Erik Johnson told local ABC and NBC affiliate KTEN.
