4 years in prison for driver in crash that killed 2 teen girls walking near Fairfax Co. school

[mahatmakanejeeves]

4 years in prison for driver in crash that killed 2 teen girls walking near Fairfax Co. school

Jack Moore | [e-mail]
Scott Gelman | [e-mail]
September 6, 2024, 3:50 PM


Fairfax County police respond to the collision near the intersection of Blake Lane and Five Oaks Road.(WTOP/Kristi King)

The Fairfax County, Virginia, man in a speeding BMW who plowed into two teen girls walking home from school in June 2022 has been sentenced to four years in prison following emotionally wrenching victim impact statements in court Friday.

Usman Shahid, who was 18 at the time of the crash, was convicted of two counts of involuntary manslaughter in April in the deaths of 14-year-old Ada Gabriela Martinez Nolasco and 15-year-old Leeyan Hanjia Yan, both students at Oakton High School. A third girl was wounded in the crash. … A four-year sentence was recommended by the jury after Shahid’s conviction, but the sentence still had to be finalized by a Fairfax County Circuit Court judge.

{snip}

Defense attorney Peter Greenspan told the judge that Shahid had no criminal record and worked multiple jobs. … “He did something an 18-year-old with an ego would do, which was to show off a new used car he got a few days before,” Greenspan said. “He has been punished and continues to be punished. He’s going to carry this with him for the rest of his life.”

The crash happened at Blake Lane and Five Oaks Road, not far from Oakton High School, shortly before noon on June 7, 2022. … Prosecutors said Shahid was driving more than double the speed limit — accelerating from 60 mph to 81 mph in a 35 mph zone — when he collided with an SUV that was trying to make a left turn onto Five Oaks Road. Shahid’s vehicle then careened onto the sidewalk, striking and killing the girls and injuring a third student as all three were walking home from school, according to prosecutors.

{snip}

Jack Moore
Jack Moore joined WTOP.com as a digital writer/editor in July 2016. Previous to his current role, he covered federal government management and technology as the news editor at Nextgov.com, part of Government Executive Media Group.
[e-mail]

Scott Gelman
Scott Gelman is a digital editor and writer for WTOP. A South Florida native, Scott graduated from the University of Maryland in 2019. During his time in College Park, he worked for The Diamondback, the school’s student newspaper.
[e-mail]

[GreenWave]

1. Speeding at a time when youngsters walk home from school?

Resulting in death and only gets 4 years?

[LoisB]

2. Four years?!? Who is his daddy?