Police on Saturday identified the four people killed in Butts County when a car fleeing deputies slammed head-on into a pickup truck at a high rate of speed.
The crash happened at the intersection of Ga. 36 and Nathan Thaxton Road about 5:30 p.m. Friday, Butts County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Jeff Nix told AJC.com. He said authorities were pursuing a Chevrolet sedan prior to the fatal collision.
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According to the Georgia State Patrol, the chase began after Monroe County deputies stopped an Impala on I-75 for a traffic violation. As the deputy approached the car, the driver sped away.
The deputy called off the chase at mile marker 198 and the Impala exited the interstate onto Ga. 36 toward Jackson, authorities said.
Moments later, a Butts County deputy traveling the opposite direction was nearly struck head-on by the speeding vehicle, Sheriff Gary Long said in a Facebook post. Police said the Impala was going about 110 mph when it passed the deputy in the wrong lane and continued east.
“By the time my deputy could turn around, the suspect vehicle was out of sight and had successfully eluded law enforcement for the (second) time,” Long said in his post.
The wreck occurred after the Impala ran off the road around a curve and over-corrected, according to the GSP. The vehicle crossed into the westbound lane and hit the Chevrolet pickup head-on.
Two of the four people inside the truck were killed, authorities said. They were identified as 72-year-old Judy Martin and 76-year-old Sandra Bowden, both of Covington.
The driver of the pickup, identified as 79-year-old Thomas Bowden was critically injured in the wreck. Ronald Martin, 76, who was in the front passenger seat, was also hurt.
Two people riding in the Impala were killed in the crash. They were identified as Ebony Young, 25, of Savannah and 26-year-old Sukquawn Hayes of Garden City.
The car’s driver, 23-year-old Shikym Jenkins of Garden City, was taken to Atlanta Medical Center in critical condition, according to the GSP.
Long said that Jenkins and Hayes both had outstanding warrants out of Chatham County, and that a loaded gun was discovered in the back seat.
Young, he said, was released from prison earlier this year after serving two months of a six-year sentence for drug possession and fleeing law enforcement.
Authorities have not released the conditions of the three people injured, but Long asked his community to keep those affected by the wreck in their thoughts and prayers.
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