A driver was convicted for a 2022 crash that killed two teen girls who were walking home from Oakton High School in Fairfax County, Virginia.
Usman Shahid, who was 18 at the time of the crash, was found guilty Wednesday of two counts of involuntary manslaughter.
Victims' family members burst into tears as the verdict came down, while Shahid showed little emotion.
“I feel like I can finally breathe again. We are beginning to get justice,” the mother of one victim told News4 partner Telemundo 44 in Spanish.
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The judge ordered Shahid to be jailed immediately, over his attorney’s objections.
Prosecutors said Shahid was driving a BMW and accelerated to 81 mph in a 35 mph zone on Blake Lane just before noon on June 7, 2022. It was an early release school day near the end of the school year. He saw that a traffic light was yellow, floored it and slammed into a Toyota 4Runner whose driver had been turning left. Police testified that the force of the crash sent Shahid’s BMW off the road and onto the sidewalk, where he hit three teen girls.
Shahid, who had three friends in the car and was driving on a learner’s permit, then plowed through a mailbox, utility box and power pole.
One passenger testified that in the moments after the crash, Shahid said, “I think I killed three girls.”
Two of the crash victims died of their injuries and the third was seriously hurt.
A resident of the area described a heartbreaking scene after the crash, with a woman performing CPR on one victim. He said Shahid was worried about how his father would react to the crash.
15-year-old Leeyan Yan was among the Oakton crash victims
Leeyan Yan was one of the two girls killed. She was 15 and her parents’ only child.
Yan’s mother described her as a bright social butterfly who brought her friends together and excelled in Bible school. She was funny, full of faith and looking forward to college.
"I recall the moments she was laughing loudly with her friends on the phone and then I ... scolded her to be quiet. We never knew it was her last moment," her mother said in a victim impact statement.
Her mother struggled to describe the pain of losing her daughter.
“Any word could not describe that sorrow. The tortured agony took a color away from our vision. All objects in the world looked white and black,” she said.
Defense tried to shift blame to another driver after teens were killed in Oakton crash
Shahid’s defense attorney argued that Shahid was an inexperienced driver and tried to shift blame to the SUV driver. That driver testified that he was stationary and trying to make a left turn when Shahid’s car crashed into his with incredible force.
In court, the SUV driver tearfully described what happened.
"I was waiting for the tail end of the group coming through … I felt, like, a slam. It was a train-like collision I’ve never experienced before … My initial thought was it was a bad movie … I was in shock," he testified.
The defense also faulted a detective, accusing her of tunnel vision with her investigation, and asked why she did not record an interview with the SUV driver.
A nationally known crash expert testified in support of the prosecution and said the BMW’s sophisticated data recorder showed that Shahid accelerated form 60 to 81 mph and never hit the brakes.
Family members and friends of the victims and Shahid packed the courtroom for portions of the trial.
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In closing arguments, prosecutor Jenna Sands told the jury only one person was responsible for the crash: Shahid.
Shahid is due to appear at a sentencing hearing on Thursday morning and faces up to 10 years in prison for each of the two charges. The victims’ families are scheduled to speak, and the jury will get a chance to make a sentencing recommendation. The judge will make the final sentencing decision in the months ahead.
Stay with NBC Washington for more details on this developing story.
