 Hello everyone, my name is Tom Donohue; I live on the corner of 22nd and Prout Street. I captured the events leading to the death of Mr. Farewell on my security cameras. First, I'd like to offer my deepest condolences to the entire family of Mr. Farewell. I don't know him and never will; however, I feel an attachment to him that requires me to share his final moments on this earth. I also think I've been tasked with doing whatever I can to help find the person responsible for sharing this terrible story. The only way I can tell this story is from the cameras that have assisted so many in the past of things that have happened in front of my place I call home for eight years. I have three cameras, one points down Prout Street SE, one that covers the intersection of Prout and Minnesota, and one in the back that covers the back yard and traffic coming down 22nd street. It was Friday night just before midnight when it occurred. I did not hear or see it happen as it happened. It wasn't until I listened to the sirens' constant sound over my bedroom TV that caught my attention. I got up, walked over to my monitors, and saw nothing but a Christmas Tree worth of lights all over, making it even hard to see what was actually happening. I jumped on my segway and went over the maybe 100 feet or so. I couldn't tell what had happened; it seemed like whatever did happen had wrapped up. I spoke to an officer who said to me that there had been an accident. I told him that I could come back and review my cameras just about then. I had an MPD officer who knew about my cameras come over and ask if I would check them and let them know what I found. Before I left, I asked if the person had made it; they basically said it didn't look good, so I hurried over, but it seemed clear they didn't seem to know much if anything about what had occured. I had some issues with the program I use, so the easiest way to review clips was not working. Thankfully I have a backup, and that is a card in each of the cameras I could draw from. I began to look through the 10-minute clips until the cameras started to tell me the final moments of Mr. Farewell's life. It begins with the car's appearance driving up the alley between Prout Street and Nicholson Streets; it seems he sits there until Mr. Farewell, riding a bike, comes into view. It appears a woman is walking with him on the opposite side of the sidewalk. Mr. Farewell gets on the sidewalk.  As all three of them continue down Prout Street, it seems that Mr. Farewell and the car driver are having a conversation. It wasn't until Mr. Farewell got to the corner of 22nd and Prout that the conversation got heated. Mr. Farewell got off his bike, yelling at the driver of the car. Mr. Farewell walked about halfway from where he left the bike on the sidewalk, yelling at the cars' driver, then proceeded to back to the bike, got on it, and continued biking past the corner to about the crosswalk between Prout Street and Young Street. At this point, the woman that appears to be with Mr. Farewell, who is walking on the opposite side of the sidewalk, crosses over and begins to walk up 22nd Street. You can see Mr. Farewell attempt to cross the street when the car owner targets Mr. Farewell. its clear that the driver intended to hit Mr. Farewell. The woman appears to run up the street and away from the scene, possibly to seek safety and or contact police. The driver then backs up. I think it was likely his intention was not to stop but to continue up to Minnesota; however, the bike gets lodged up under the car. He gets out of the vehicle paying no attention to Mr. Farewell to try to unlodge it. He gets back into the car, pulls forward, then back gets back out of the vehicle. At this point, passerby's begin to get out; it is a bit hard to tell precisely what is happening with everyone because of the distance; however, I can see that he gets back into the car, backs up, and drives away from the scene, headed down Young Street with the bike still lodged up under the car. You can tell this by marks from the bike being dragged in the asphalt. There is no indication that Mr. Farewell continued with the car after inital contact.  I gathered the critical parts of the video and ran them over to the detectives; at first, they were not homicide detectives. At some point, I recall hearing from someone that Mr. Farewell had died. My stomach sank, I recall the images I had just seen of this man. I showed them to the detective, and I remember his saying, so this was intentional. I agreed. He had got on his radio then on his cell phone. At this point, I only had the view of the actual incident. I told the detectives that I had the view of Prout Street and that I would go back inside to pull that view and would be back after some time. I narrowed down the video and downloaded it to my iPad. I ran across the street again to show the now homicide detectives what the video wanted us to know. From this view, we had a good view of the car, noting that the front passenger quarter panel had been replaced and was gray, all details that might help them find the vehicle. Feeling confident I had shown the detectives everything I had, I came back into my apartment to sit on my bed for a moment. I shared with a friend who was staying with me that Mr. Farewell had passed away. I kept thinking about him, what sort of family he had, how they would find out what details would be shared. I was unsettled and could not rest, so I got up and began to edit the videos together for the detectives. I captured a photo of the car then texted it to the detectives in case they were able to share it with officers in the field to be on the lookout.
I posted a photo of the car onto my Facebook page. At some point, one of the West Daughters posted a response saying it was her dad. I was shocked and responded right away. I figured they would ask about the video; the first thing that came to mind was the images I had already seen of their father. As I thought about it, I didn't want to jeopardize anything happening with the prosecution. Therefore, I thought it would be better for me to allow the police to handle the video's release. So I described what I remembered from the video as detailed as possible I can't tell you how many times I placed myself in their shoes and said, what would you want to know? I could feel the West daughter behind the phone. It is truly an experience I'll never forget. To the family of Mr. David Farewell, I may not know Mr. Farewell; however, please know you are all in my thoughts and prayers as you seek answers and justice for Mr. Farewell. Just rest assured that I'll continue to follow this incident. No matter how this mystery unveils itself, I'll stand ready to help in any way possible. I know several of you have inquired about the video. I can't lie it at times is difficult to watch; however, I believe there will be a time and a place to share it, likely when this matter comes to an end legally; right now, I'm sure many of you are just grasping for anything that can begin to bring you closure. I have had you all in my thoughts and prayers from the first moment I learned of the incident. I look forward to hearing stories you may share and learn more about Mr. Farewell. Thank you for inviting me along with the Fairlawn community to share in your vigil this week. From what I understand, you have a big family. Take this moment to learn from one another about your family, discover the things that make you similar, goofy, strong, listen to each other's stories, and grasp the memories that will be shared and finally, love each other. Mr. Farewell was just a few years older than me, and the same age as my sister, his untimely death has made me reflect on how short life can be. My heart goes out to you. All my thoughts will remain thinking about you, and I stand by to help in any way possible. Rest in Peace, Mr. David Farewell, rest in peace. Tom PS, I will be attending the vigil on Friday, lets use my addreess to help you find your way. No worries my address is only about 100 yards or less from the immediate area of the incident. I have arranged for the police department to close a section of the road to assure everyone is safe and able to be with each other without concerns for traffic. You can GPS this address: 2200 Prout Street SE Washington, DC 20020 |
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