Driver had 2 license suspensions before crash that killed NC woman, officials say
A North Carolina man has been convicted in a December 2023 crash that killed a 19-year-old riding in the passenger seat, officials said.
Codey Phillip-Wayne Jones, 25, was found guilty of second-degree murder, felony death by vehicle, driving while impaired and reckless driving, Forsyth County District Attorney James O’Neill said in a June 27 news release.
Jones’ driver’s license had been suspended twice before the December 2023 crash that killed Victoria Rose Brown, officials said. Both incidents resulting in his suspension happened on the same interstate where Brown died, officials said.
McClatchy News was unable to reach Jones’ attorney on June 30.
On the evening of the crash, witnesses said they saw the Chevrolet Silverado Jones was driving swerving across lanes, trying to run other cars off the roadway, flashing his high beams, and slowing down and speeding up at “erratic intervals,” according to officials.
After a small, red truck passed Jones’ vehicle, he sped up — going 30 mph over the speed limit — and hit it, officials said. This caused Jones’ truck to crash into a concrete median and roll over several times, according to officials.
Brown was ejected from the truck in the crash and died at the scene, officials said.
In an interview with law enforcement, Jones admitted to not having working airbags or seat belts in his truck, saying he never got them replaced after a prior crash, according to officials.
He told investigators he put seat belt buckles he got at a junkyard in the receiver “to avoid the car’s alerts while driving,” according to officials.
The investigation also found Jones was driving with a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.18 percent, 0.10 over the legal limit, officials said.
Brown did not have alcohol in her system, officials said.
Jones was sentenced to a maximum of over 20 years in prison on the second-degree murder charge and more than three months on the driving while impaired charge, officials said.
“Prior to sentencing, (Brown’s) mother, Deanna Davis, delivered a moving and emotional victim impact statement to the Court. Mrs. Davis expressed the loss and heartbreak her family has suffered because of this tragedy,” officials said.
Brown was remembered as having a “joyous personality” that made everyone who met her fall in love, according to an online memorial.
“We’ll continue to spread her story, let people know who she was,” Bree Thorpe, one of Brown’s friends, told WXII. “... That way, her light is still shown in this world, even though she’s no longer with us.”