Woman in Burning SUV Was Not Murdered

A woman police believe is Carol Jean Haugen was found burning in her SUV on a dirt road in South Richland Friday. The 55-year-old Kennewick woman was likely not murdered, police say.

If she wasn't murdered one must wonder if it was self-inflicted, but there are many reasons police are not drawing that automatic conclusion. One is the position of the SUV: askew and half-way off the dirt road. It is possible the undercarriage ignited the tumbleweeds and caused the fire.

Police are speaking to her family, friends and co-workers trying to get ideas as to why she drove off road. They are interviewing neighbors to determine how long she was there.

It certainly is a mysterious case.