Family speaks about "void in our hearts" after arrest made from deadly Carroll County crash

BALTIMORE -- A family is grieving the death of a 22-year-old woman who was killed by another driver during a police pursuit in April in Carroll County.

Jamall Steele, 33, was arrested on more than a dozen charges in connection to the April 20 crash that left Kayla Rodriguez Garcia, from Randallstown, dead.

Police said Steele collided with a car driven by Rodriguez Garcia along Liberty Road near Fallon Road. Rodriguez Garcia died but a passenger in her car survived the collision, according to officers.

"There remains a void in our hearts," said Yanixa Garcia, Kayla Rodriguez Garcia's mother. "They don't understand the pain they caused our family."

WJZ's Cristina Mendez spoke with Rodriguez Garcia's family in the wake of Friday's arrest.

"This is, in a way, the first step of justice. What would you say to her (Kayla) if you could talk to her?" Mendez asked.

"I know that we can't get you back but what happened to you, my love, is gonna be heard so that it doesn't happen to anyone else, and I know she would have liked that answer," Yanixa Garcia said. 

Rodriguez Garcia is remembered by loved ones for being an active member in church, playing the piano, the drums and being a teacher in the children's ministry. 

Dash camera and body-worn camera footage released last month by the Independent Investigations Division of the Maryland Office of the Attorney General showed the moment Steele first allegedly sped past Deputy Kyle Hessler. 

Moments into the pursuit, Deputy Hessler's dash camera video shows he drove up to the aftermath of the crash. 

Rodriguez Garcia's vehicle was on one side of Liberty Road while the vehicle Steele was inside crashed into a guardrail on the opposite side of the major thoroughfare. 

Steele was taken to the hospital for injuries sustained during the crash but was later released. 

Charges he now faces include vehicular homicide while under the influence, plus driving with a suspended and revoked license. 

State court records reveal the suspect has been arrested three times between January 2021 to July 2022 for driving without a license. 

In 2019, court filings show Steele received a Probation Before Judgement for driving while impaired by drugs or alcohol.