DA updates details about deadly car crash
A shooting Feb. 20 in Fairfield and an armed robbery and carjacking Feb. 21 in Vallejo preceded a deadly high-speed chase on Interstate 80 in Fairfield on Feb. 22 in which the vehicle's 18-year-old driver and two unidentified minors who were passengers died.
These were among the updated details released Tuesday by the Solano County District Attorney's Office.
The crash occurred at 12:30 a.m. Feb. 22, when the speeding vehicle's driver, Jackari Taylor of Vallejo, exited the freeway at Suisun Valley Road at speeds greater than 100 mph. Unable to maneuver the turn, he crashed the vehicle and died at the scene. A male passenger, a minor identified only by the initials J.W., also was pronounced dead at the crash site.
Law enforcement officers began medical treatment on another passenger, a girl, also only identifitied by her initials, J.D. She died of her injuries while being transported to a hospital.
Monica Martinez, a spokeswoman for DA Krishna Abrams, declined Wednesday to release the names of the minors, and the Solano County Coroner said the names were “protected” for the time being and would not be released.
But in a press statement Tuesday, Martinez, acknowledging “significant public interest in this incident,” provided some new details:
About 9:48 p.m. Feb. 20, Fairfield police officers were flagged down on Pennsylvania Avenue at Missouri Street regarding a shooting.
Officers found a Black man in the middle of the street suffering from a gunshot wound.
He told officers that he met with J.D. in Fairfield, telling them that “he felt something didn't feel right and had asked J.D. if she was setting him up,” Martinez wrote in the prepared statement.
Shortly after the victim asked if he were being set up, he said two Black men wearing ski masks jumped him and shot him in the back. The victim was taken to a hospital by ambulance. He is paralyzed and remains in the hospital in the Intensive Care Unit.
Witnesses saw two men, dressed in all-black clothing and wearing masks, running from the area. Officers found 11 spent bullet casings at the scene.
About 7:30 p.m. Feb. 21, a second victim, a 17-yearold Richmond resident who was not identified, agreed to meet with J.D. at a Vallejo residence. As the victim exited the parked vehicle, he said two males came out from an alley with guns pointed at him. They then stole his necklace and car as he was being held at gunpoint.
One suspect was described as a Black man, possibly a juvenile, wearing dark clothing, a black mask and armed with a handgun. The second also was described as a Black man, possibly a juvenile, wearing dark clothing, a black mask and armed with a rifle.
The victim, who was not familiar with Vallejo, “ran to a point of safety where he could contact his mother,” according to information in the press statement.
A bulletin went out to all law enforcement to be on the lookout for the victim's carjacked vehicle. Several hours later, California Highway Patrol officers spotted the reported stolen vehicle traveling eastbound on Interstate 80.
As the vehicle approached Red Top Road, officers attempted to initiate a traffic stop. However, instead of pulling over, Taylor pulled away from the pursuing officers, reportedly reaching speeds of up to 120 mph.
Taylor then exited the freeway at Suisun Valley Road and crashed.
At the scene of the crash, officers found two firearms: an AR-15 military-style rifle loaded with a high-capacity, 30-round magazine on J.W.'s lap; and a Polymer 80 Glock-style handgun (a ghost gun) loaded with a high-capacity, 30-round magazine lying next to the driver. The ghost gun had been modified to fire fully automatically. The necklace of the second victim also was found at the crash site.
The crash prompted the CHP to invoke the countywide Fatal Incident Protocol, and the Solano County Major Crimes Task Force responded to the scene to conduct an independent investigation.
Upon arrival, they found Taylor, J.W. and J.D. All three had been ejected at the time of the crash. They were not wearing seatbelts, according to investigators.
The investigation remains ongoing, said Martinez, adding that no further details would be released at this time.
Anyone with information regarding the crash should call the Solano County Major Crimes Task Force at 784-1828.