Mom faces 55 years behind bars for 98-mph crash that killed her 3-year-old girl: ‘Steering a missile down the road’
A Maryland mom faces up to 55 years behind bars for killing her 3-year-old daughter in a crash while driving at almost 100 mph — in what prosecutors described as “steering a missile down the road in the middle of rush hour.”
DanShell Evon, 38, was recorded driving her three kids at 98 mph — well over twice the speed limit — seconds before her 2015 Kia Optima slammed into a Ford F-150 truck in Silver Spring in May 2022, WJLA reported.
The mom and her two 13-year-old children suffered non-life-threatening injuries in the horrific wreck, as did two adults in the pickup truck.
But her 3-year-old daughter, Dreamie Dior Jackson — who was improperly secured in a backless booster seat — was killed, WJLA reported, citing the Montgomery County State Attorney’s Office.
“This heartbreaking loss of such a young member of our community is a tragedy that was easily avoidable,” State’s Attorney John McCarthy said in a statement.
“At the speeds the defendant was traveling, she wasn’t driving a car, she was steering a missile down the road in the middle of rush hour. If the barest of common-sense parenting skills were in place, there would have been a proper child safety seat installed,” he said.
Evon was found guilty of gross negligent manslaughter, four counts of second-degree assault and neglect of a minor. She is scheduled to be sentenced Aug. 9 and faces a maximum of 55 years in prison.
Montgomery County previously lowered the speed limit on the stretch of road from 45 to 35 mph, but nearby residents said speeding remained a problem, NBC Washington reported.
Dreamie Dior was “a loving, studious child” who “was known by her family and friends to be sharp, smart, and solitary,” her obituary states.
“Dreamie was a princess and a superhero. She loved makeup and tutus, but you would often find her horseplaying around with her older brother. She loved life,” it says.
“She loved makeup, playing with her dolls, drawing art and going to her gymnastics classes,” Evon said in the obit. “She had a huge heart, and her personality was contagious. She was a very special soul.”
