Austin Police have charged a suspected drunk driver with capital murder after plowing into a crowded street at a popular music festival in Austin, Texas last Thursday, killing three people and injuring at least twenty three others.
According to reports, Rashad Charjuan Owens, 21, was spotted by police around 12:30am, driving the wrong way down a one-way street. As the authorities attempted to stop him, he sped off, ultimately accelerating through a group of pedestrians, striking a taxi and a moped, and crashing into a parked van.
The suspect then attempted to flee, but was chased down by an officer and tased before being taken into custody.
“It looked like something out of a movie,” Russ Barone, a witness at the scene said.
“I was down here for the music … we were having the best time ever. And then it turned into the worst thing I’ve ever seen,” Barone added.
Sandy Le, Jamie West, and Steven Craenmehr have all been identified as the victims killed in the incident. Six people are still recovering in the hospital — including two in critical condition.
Meanwhile, Rashad Charjuan Owens, the father of six children, sits in a Texas prison on a $3-million bail charged with capital murder and possibly 22 additional counts of aggravated assault.
Under Texas law, that means that he’s eligible for the death penalty.
Whether he’s killed or locked in prison for the rest of his life is still to be decided. But after such a senseless and inconsiderate act, almost no amount of torture or punishment can equate to the pain and suffering that the victims and their families will have to deal with for the rest of their lives.
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