Police Investigate Rash Of Fatal Accidents
MARYLAND (WJZ)—Deadly highways. Swarms of emergency vehicles responded to three separate crashes on Maryland roads in a span of just 12 hours. Four people were killed, including a 5-year-old Baltimore boy.
Weijia Jiang has the latest on the investigations.
The weather was clear, and two of the accidents happened during the day. As police work to confirm causes, several Maryland families are mourning.
Just days after the Christmas holiday, a South Baltimore family is ripped apart after their car was rear-ended on the JFX, turning the northbound lanes into a parking lot well into rush hour.
It happened just before 3 p.m. Wednesday.
Siblings, 5-year-old Jake Owen and his 9-year-old sister Alexandra, were flown to the Johns Hopkins Children's Center.
An hour later, Jake died.
The parents, James and Susan Owen, were also taken to the hospital. All four were wearing seat belts.
State police identified the driver of the SUV that plowed into them as Devin Xavier McKeiver, 23, from Baltimore County. He was treated for minor injuries.
The accident is one of three deadly crashes on Maryland roads in a span of 12 hours.
On Rockville Pike in Bethesda, a Metro bus collided with a pickup truck, killing the truck driver.
"I felt the bus kinda sway, and then it was just like bang, we just hit," said Wilma Green, passenger.
About a dozen passengers from both vehicles were treated at the hospital.
And just a few miles down the Beltway around 3 a.m. Thursday, two young women were killed on Silver Spring's University Boulevard—22-year-old Jenice Richards and 19-year-old Tamara Johnson.
Her uncle was at the scene.
"She works and goes to school. She just graduated from high school, thinking about going to college," said Carl Morris, victim's uncle.
Police say their car was the only one involved. Up against a brick wall, it's barely recognizable.
Investigators are still working to figure out how all three tragedies happened.
To that end, right now the ramp from I-83 to the Inner Loop of the Beltway is closed as state police investigate. It's unclear for how long.
The little girl involved in that crash and her parents are in stable condition.
Police have not determined whether they will file charges against McKeiver. They believe speed was a factor in the collision.
