Inset top: Olvin Josue Torres Velasquez (Obituary). Inset bottom: Jonathan Alberto Mendez (Obituary). Background: The scene after the March 15, 2023, crash on Rock Creek Parkway in Washington, D.C. (WUSA/YouTube).
A Washington, D.C., woman has been sentenced for fleeing a traffic stop at high speed and crashing into another car, a collision that killed a Lyft driver and two passengers.
Nakita Walker, 45, received a 29-year prison term this week, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia announced.
A jury in April convicted Walker on three counts of involuntary manslaughter in the deaths of Mohamed Kamara, 42, Jonathan Alberto Cabrera Mendez, 23, and Olvin Josue Torres Velasquez, 22. She was also found guilty of fleeing a law enforcement officer and assault with a dangerous weapon.
Prosecutors said the evidence showed that on March 14, 2023, Walker had gone to see a movie and spent time with friends. After midnight, she got behind the wheel to head home.
While driving, Walker was speeding and blew through a red light in view of a police officer, prompting the officer to initiate a traffic stop.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office said Walker “initially complied with the stop,” but then, during the encounter, she “took off,” reaching speeds of up to 100 mph along Rock Creek Parkway in Washington, D.C.
During the flight, Walker crossed over the double-yellow line and slammed into an oncoming vehicle. That car was driven by Kamara, who was working as a Lyft driver to help support his family in Sierra Leone, local NBC affiliate WRC reported.
Mendez and Velasquez were heading home to Arlington, Virginia, after a night out.
Walker reportedly had a blood-alcohol content of 0.1, just over the legal limit, as well as cannabis in her system.
As she was placed into an ambulance to be checked out, she apparently was excited and laughing, a paramedic later testified, according to area CBS affiliate WUSA. Her attorney said this could have been a result of her broken bones and head injuries.
“Three lives were lost because of Nakita Walker’s reckless and violent choices,” U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro said. “Their families now carry a grief that can never fully heal. Today’s sentence reflects the profound harm caused and reinforces that fleeing law enforcement and endangering others has devastating consequences.”
Walker apparently sobbed in court as she was sentenced.
“Today I take accountability for what happened,” she said, according to WRC. “I pray for forgiveness because their lives mattered, too. I don’t have any excuses. I didn’t know the victims personally, but I walk with them every day. It was never my intent nor would I ever want to cause harm to you or your loved ones.”
