What to Know
- A driver who sped down a Long Island roadway in a stolen car, causing a crash that killed five people, has pleaded guilty
- Jamel Turner, 25, of Bellport, pleaded guilty to charges including vehicular homicide and driving while ability impaired by drugs
- He could face 27 years in prison, prosecutors said. He’s expected to be sentenced on May 7
A driver who sped down a Long Island roadway at 154 miles per hour in a stolen car, causing a crash that killed five people on Valentine’s Day, has pleaded guilty to aggravated vehicular homicide, prosecutors say.
Jamel Turner, 25, of Bellport, pleaded guilty to five counts of aggravated vehicular homicide, six counts of first-degree assault, one count of driving while ability impaired by drugs and one count of criminal sale of a controlled substance in the third degree, the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office said Wednesday.
Prosecutors say Turner was driving a stolen Chevrolet Camaro east at 154 mph on Route 25 in Ridge around 11:20 a.m. on Feb. 14, 2018 when he crashed into a Mazda that was going the same direction.
The impact forced the Mazda into another eastbound car. Turner also hit an oil truck that was traveling west, prosecutors said.
All of the Mazda passengers — Jacquelyn McCoy, 55, her daughter Mary Alice Booker, 36, her son Anthony McCoy, 33, and his girlfriend Tameka Foster, 42 — were pronounced dead at the scene, according to prosecutors.
Turner’s passenger Lonidell Skinner, 19, died after he was ejected from the Camaro. Turner’s dog also died in the crash.
Local
Video from the scene showed firefighters hosing down the smoking, charred wreckage of a car as police investigated on a road littered with auto parts and debris.
Prosecutors say Turner was under the influence of marijuana at the time of the crash and had crack cocaine on him.
He could face 27 years in prison, prosecutors said. He’s expected to be sentenced on May 7.
