Police in Michigan are trying to figure out what led a mom to go on a wild hit-and-run spree. Rachele Ricklefs injured 11 people while on her spree, and she did so with her two children in the back seat. As she searched for more victims, she reportedly crisscrossed through several cities, leaving destruction in her wake. Although police are still definitively putting together the woman’s motive, there are suspicions that she may have been experiencing a mental health break.
On the night of September 26, 2025, police in Warren, Michigan, responded to multiple 911 calls in relation to people being hit by a black Jeep, the Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office shared in a news release. The driver of the vehicle was identified as 30-year-old Lake Orion resident Rachele Ricklefs.
The first victim was an adult male cyclist. Ricklefs allegedly hit him with her vehicle and didn’t stop. Thankfully, he didn’t receive any injuries after the collision, the Detroit Free Press reported.
She next apparently had an interaction with Clawson police officers, where she reversed her vehicle into a patrol car before fleeing. She returned and hit another patrol car. Police said she drove toward an officer but that person wasn’t injured.
Ricklefs’ 12-year-old son, who was in the car at the time, managed to escape around the time of the Clawson incident, the Free Press reported. Her 6-year-old daughter remained in the vehicle throughout the spree. The girl was unharmed, police said.
After she fled Clawson police, Ricklefs reportedly hit another pedestrian, Fox 2 reported. Shortly thereafter, she allegedly ran over a man in a parking lot. Leaving yet again, she allegedly hit two more people in a parking lot before hitting another pedestrian. Eventually, the woman made her way to a Walmart.
In the parking lot, Ricklefs allegedly hit a store employee. As she tried to flee, she collided with two more pedestrians and their cars. According to police, she was finally arrested after the Walmart incident. Ricklefs reportedly resisted arrest, trying to kick and bite officers, per the Free Press.
“She intentionally drove her vehicle into 10 individuals and one police officer,” the prosecutor’s office’s release read. There may also be additional victims who have not been identified yet.
Ricklefs has been charged with 10 counts of attempted murder, two counts of fleeing and eluding, two counts of malicious destruction of police property, two counts of malicious destruction of personal property, one count of assault with a dangerous weapon, and one count of assaulting/resisting/obstructing a police officer, WDIV reported.
A judge set Ricklefs on a $750,000 cash/surety bond. If she is released, she must wear a GPS tether and isn’t allowed to have contact with any witnesses.
“The allegations in this case shocking and deeply disturbing. Our office is committed to pursuing this case to the fullest extent of the law to ensure justice is served,” Macomb County Prosecutor Peter J. Lucido shared in the release.
