Eight people were injured Sunday night in Philadelphia when a vehicle drove into a crowd celebrating the Eagles' win over the Washington Commanders to advance to the Super Bowl.
The injuries ranged from minor pain to fractures, the Philadelphia Police Department said in a statement Monday. Information about the victims' ages, genders, conditions, and whether they were hospitalized was unavailable.
The driver was identified by police as Rebekah DeShields, 26, of Narberth, Pennsylvania, one of Philadelphia's historic, train-adjacent suburbs collectively known as the Main Line. She was charged Monday, district attorney's spokesperson Dustin M. Slaughter said by email.
DeShields was charged with aggravated assault, aggravated assault by a vehicle, and causing an accident involving death or personal injury, Slaughter said.
It's not clear if DeShields has a lawyer. A phone number listed under her name was out of service Monday evening; another in which a voicemail box identified the user as a person with that name did not immediately respond to a message.
The local public defender's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Police said DeShields was driving a Mercedes-Benz GLA 250, a subcompact crossover SUV, when it hit celebrants at Broad and Spring Garden streets in the Spring Garden neighborhood at 9:31 p.m. Sunday.
Police initially indicated it may have been an accident.
"Does not appear intentional at this time," the department said on X late Sunday.
It's not clear why police now allege the driver committed assault, and a possible motive was unavailable. Officers stopped the vehicle at the scene, police said in the Monday statement.
Philadelphia's Office of Emergency Management announced Sunday evening that streets on either side of Broad Street, from just north of City Hall nearly to its famed South Street, would be closed to traffic for celebrants. The incident happened north of the the closures.
The Eagles beat the Commanders 55-23 and will face the Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl in New Orleans on Feb. 9.
