COWETA COUNTY, Ga. — Annette Rush's son said he waited for his mother to call him when he got off of work Thursday morning, but the call didn't come. Lernard Rush said his cousin notified him that a car crashed into his mother's home, giving her life-threatening injuries.
"I was shocked that in. I ain't believe it... When he called me it caught me way off guard," he said.
According to the sheriff's office, a Coweta County deputy was attempting to stop a car for not diming its brights when the car took off at 130 miles per hour. The deputy eventually lost track of the car but then came across a man standing in his front yard.
The deputy asked the man if he saw a car traveling at a high speed. When the man responded that he had, he showed the deputy the car that crashed into the house.
Annette was inside the home at the time. Her family said they initially thought she would be fine. When she was being taken away in an ambulance for treatment, she gave a thumbs up.
Later, Lernard and the rest of Annette's family learned she died from complications due to injuries that were sustained in the crash. The sheriff's office said a 14-year-old boy was driving the car. He is now in custody.
All morning long, Annette's family gathered at the house while work crews tried to stabilize what was left of the duplex where she lived with her husband and son.
Family members said she was active in her community, particularly her church, and that she was known for her kindness towards others.
"She the rock, and she had a heart of gold. She could help you. She would help you. And she's a God-fearing woman. She would help anybody. She got a good heart," Lernard told 11Alive.
Neighbors mentioned a curved road near where the car veered off course. Skid marks in the grass show where the vehicle eventually hit the house. Annette's aunt, Betty Dennis, said car crashes on that road are a common occurrence, but she never imagined her niece would be a victim.