Two drivers suspected of drag racing when they collided with another car will face a third charge of vehicular homicide, DeKalb police Capt. Steve Fore told The Atlanta Journal Constitution.
Jaylen Coleman, 6, died over the weekend. His 4-year-old brother, Jordan, and 3-year-old sister, Lauren, died last week when two cars crashed into one driven by their mother on Moreland Avenue. The funeral is Wednesday.
DeKalb police arrested James Benford and Melanie Putnam on charges of reckless driving. Investigative sketches show that their two cars, which the arrest warrant said were going 100 miles per hour, were nearly side-by-side when they collided with 30-year-old Cazhara Lovett’s car that was turning from Moreland Avenue on to Constitution Road.
Residents have told The AJC that drag racing on south Moreland Avenue is a historic problem. DeKalb police said they plan to step up patrols because the activity picks up in spring and summer.
Last week a DeKalb magistrate set a $300,000 bond for James G. Benford and a $175,000 bond for Melanie Putnam on vehicular homicide and reckless driving charges in the deaths of Lauren Coleman, 3, and Jordan Coleman, 4. Benford rated a higher bond because he had several citations in the past five years including two for speeding, while Putnam had a clean driving record.
It was not immediately known whether the third count of vehicular homicide would change the bond amount. Online jail records show Benford as still incarcerated and Putnam as released on bond.
Please return to AJC.com for updates.
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