The mother of a teenager accused of causing a wreck that killed a Fulton County teacher expressed her condolences to the families involved Thursday. But it's still not known whether the woman and her daughter will face vehicular homicide charges.
The attorney for Syreeta Collins, accused of telling her teenage daughter to drive without a proper license before the Monday wreck occurred, released a statement on her behalf.
"My family and I would like to express its deepest sympathy and condolences for the accident that happened Monday, March 19, 2012, on Camp Creek Parkway near Campbellton Road," the statement reads. "Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Haynes family, the Price family and the entire Sandtown Middle School family as we all seek healing during this difficult time."
Shireen Haynes, 41, died in the crash and two others were seriously injured in the crash, which temporarily blocked traffic in both directions on Camp Creek Parkway. Haynes, a married mother of two and a Sandtown Middle School math teacher, had just left the school and was traveling with another teacher, Kay Price, and Price's husband at the time of the crash, police have said.
James Price picked up both women after school, and the three were in the same vehicle, a Saturn, at the time of the wreck, Detective Melissa Parker with Fulton County police previously said. The Saturn collided with another car and was pushed into the path of an oncoming tractor-trailer, police said.
Investigators believe the vehicle that caused the wreck was driven by Collins' daughter, and that Collins told her to drive the car and she would follow behind, according to police.
The teen, whose name was not released, was charged with failure to maintain lane, driving on a restricted license and suspended registration, Parker said. Collins faces a charge of allowing an unauthorized driver to operate a vehicle. Both could also face a vehicular homicide charge, Parker has said.
Collins' arrest history includes December 2009 charges for driving with an expired license and operating a vehicle without a proper tag, according to Fulton County Jail records.
The funeral for Haynes will be Saturday at 2 p.m. at Carmichael-Hemperley Funeral Home in East Point followed by burial at College Park Cemetery, according to her obituary published in the AJC. The family will receive friends Friday from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the funeral home.
"Ms. Haynes very quickly became an important part of the Sandtown family," Principal Kine Geathers said in a statement Wednesday. "We extend our deepest sympathy to her family, friends, and loved ones. ...We will continue to find comfort in the beautiful memories Ms. Haynes has left for us to cherish."
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