Driver Who Crashed Into DC Park, Killing 2, Pleads Guilty

Prosecutors say the driver admitted to drinking the night of the crash

A driver has pleaded guilty to two counts of voluntary manslaughter after his SUV slammed into a downtown D.C. park, killing two people.

Jeoffrey Richard Williams, 57, was driving a GMC Yukon SUV westbound on Pennsylvania Avenue on the wrong side of the road about 11:45 p.m. on July 10 when he veered off and careened through James Monroe Park, killing two men, prosecutors said.

Jesus Antonio Llanes-Datil, 63, and Thomas Dwight Spriggs, 42, were sitting on a park bench.

Llanes-Datil and Spriggs died instantly.

Three benches were destroyed in the crash, leaving just splinters and pieces of concrete.

Williams, of D.C., was charged with two counts of second-degree murder in September, but pleaded guilty to the lesser charges of manslaughter on Friday, the U.S. Attorney's Office for D.C. announced Tuesday.

While he was treated for non-life threatning injuries at the hospital, Williams admitted to police he was drinking alcohol earlier in the night and toxicology tests indicated he was intoxicated at the time of the crash, prosecutors said.

Police also discovered through his SUV's crash data recorder that five seconds before the crash, Williams was driving 63 mph in a 25 mph hour zone. Police say Williams accelerated and drove 68 mph one second before the crash without braking.

Williams faces a total of six to 10 years in prison. His sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 14 next year.

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