One woman lost her husband in the crash. The other woman caused the crash, which also killed her teenage son.
But today in court, the two women hugged.
Tamara Matthews avoided jail time in the crash that killed both Joshua Jenkins, 16, and Glen Walker, 35, in November 2011. She entered a guilty plea today to misdemeanor counts of homicide by vehicle and failure to maintain lane and was sentenced to 36 months' probation and 500 hours of community service, Channel 2 Action News reported.
Matthews apologized to Walker’s family in court. And when it was her turn to speak, Walker’s widow, Sandra, said she forgives Matthews.
“I know she is going through as much pain as I am feeling,” Sandra Walker told Channel 2. “I wanted her to know that I forgive her for what she did.”
On Nov. 5, 2011, Matthews veered into oncoming traffic on Flat Shoals Road in south Fulton County, near the intersection with Harper Valley Drive, causing the head-on wreck, The AJC previously reported. Eight people were hospitalized after the crash, which killed Joshua Jenkins at the scene.
Matthews’ van struck a van containing the Walker family of Duluth, which caused the family’s van to flip and land on its roof, police said.
Glen Walker, 35, who was driving the van, died from injuries weeks after the crash. His wife sustained a traumatic brain injury in the crash and turned 30 while hospitalized. The couple's two young children were not seriously injured.
At the time of the crash, the Walkers were on their way to Callaway Gardens, where Sandra Walker was planning to run a 10K race, a family member previously said. Family members aren’t sure why the Walkers had gotten off I-85 and were on Flat Shoals Road, but speculated the family may have planned to stop for a bathroom break.
Glen Walker was a loyal friend who always smiled and enjoyed playing a variety of sports, such as basketball, flag football and soccer, sister-in-law Michelle Walker said after his death. He attended the University of Georgia after growing up in Norcross.
The judge told Matthews her community service should include acts that honor the lives of her son and Glen Walker.
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