Gainesville Police arrested a 48-year-old woman accused of trying to kill herself and two young sons by crashing into a truck carrying 330 gallons of gasoline Friday night.
The Gainesville woman allegedly told a friend beforehand it was “God’s will” and “nothing could be done to change the outcome,” according to an arrest report.
At about 5 p.m., witnesses told police Melissa Mack was driving north in the southbound lane on the 5400 block of Northwest 13th Street, just south of 55th Avenue, when she attempted to hit a 2006 tanker truck “head-on”, according to the arrest report. The truck swerved away, but Mack made a U-turn and intentionally sped into the back of the truck with her two children “trapped inside.”
The crash shattered the front and back windows of Mack’s van, set off the airbags and lit the engine on fire, according to the arrest report. Witnesses helped everybody escape the crash. Only Mack was injured, with bruising from her seatbelt.
The children were medically cleared by Shands’ Pediatrics but were “very upset” by the incident, according to the arrest report. The two children were taken from Mack’s custody by the Florida Department of Children and Family.
Mack allegedly told Gainesville Police she recalled discussing God with her friend but doesn’t remember the crash “despite not hitting her head” or “losing consciousness.”
Mack remains in the Alachua County Jail as of Saturday afternoon on three counts of attempted homicide with a $900,000 bond, according to county records.
Melissa Mack
