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Inset: Marshawn Stepney (St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department). Background: The intersection near where Stepney killed several members of a family while trying to evade police (Google Maps).
A Missouri resident has been sentenced to over 20 years in prison for a tragic accident that claimed the lives of multiple family members.
In January, 21-year-old Marshawn Stepney admitted guilt to five counts of second-degree murder, along with two counts of assault, and one count each of tampering and fleeing the scene of a crash.
This Tuesday, Judge Clinton Wright of the St. Louis Circuit Court handed down a 25-year prison sentence as part of a plea agreement. This decision follows the deadly car crash that resulted in the deaths of 34-year-old Lahronda Simmons, 44-year-old Luther Simmons, 47-year-old Ephriam Simmons, 52-year-old Anngelique Simmons, and 11-year-old Takira Thompson during a high-speed pursuit.
The tragic event took place on May 6, 2022. According to charging documents accessed by St. Louis-based CBS affiliate KMOV, Stepney was driving a stolen 2015 Jeep Cherokee connected to several thefts in the St. Louis region.
As Stepney approached the intersection of Delmar Boulevard and Union Boulevard, he lost control and sideswiped a gray Infiniti. A passenger in the Jeep fired shots at the Infiniti as Stepney sped away. The Infiniti’s driver immediately called 911 for assistance.
Law enforcement eventually caught up to Stepney. Police used spike strips to try to slow the Jeep down, but the defendant kept driving — reaching speeds upwards of 80 mph in the middle of the city — before finally crashing into the Simmons family”s minivan near the intersection of Delmar and Pendleton Avenue.
In addition to the five family members dying, an 8-year-old girl and a 16-year-old girl were injured and rushed to a nearby hospital.
Amid the confusion, Stepney was able to leave the scene of the crime. The defendant then returned to the scene several hours later, contacted a resident who lived nearby, and called his mother to come pick him up. He was finally arrested 12 days after the fatal crash.
Emotions ran high during the defendant’s sentencing hearing. When a relative of the slain family came up to address the court, Stepney reportedly turned around and smirked.
“He’s smiling,” grandmother Elinor Simmons told St. Louis-based Fox affiliate KTVI, describing the interaction. “No remorse for what he had taken from us! He took a lot from us.”
During the sentencing hearing, the judge reportedly addressed the grandmother directly, praised her strength, and said no sentence would be enough under the circumstances.
“I appreciated that,” Simmons told the TV station. “My strength come[s] from God. I tell you, if God was not in my life, in my heart, I wouldn’t maybe be standing here today to talk to you.”
Law enforcement also charged two other men in relation to the incident.
Jaylen Holland, 20, stands accused of five counts of second-degree murder, armed criminal action and six counts of felony stealing. He is alleged to have been found in the back of the Jeep with a pistol nearby.
Walter Burton, 20, is also charged with five counts of second-degree murder and several theft-related crimes. He is alleged to have been found in the passenger side of the Jeep with an assault-style rifle between his legs.