A man faces charges for killing three children when he decided to completely disregard the speed limit. Now, his recent comments are only making the matter worse.
Xavier Taylor, 24, is on trial facing three counts of felony manslaughter because he plowed through a 35 mph zone while driving his Nissan 98 mph, and he slammed into a family in a Dodge that was on its way to taekwondo practice.
Maricela Mendoza eased into the intersection, heading to taekwondo practice with her four children.
The black Nissan Sentra seemed to come out of nowhere that afternoon and smashed into Mendoza’s red Dodge Stratus. Sparks flashed, and both cars spun around.
Other drivers stopped to help. They could see the three bodies of Mendoza’s youngest children in the back seat.
The driver, Maricela Mendoza, survived, as did one of her children. Her other three kids perished in the crash. As the Dallas News explains, Taylor initially claimed he wasn’t going all that fast when the crash occurred.
“In a police interview at the hospital after the crash, Taylor said ‘a red sedan pulled in front of me’ and said he was driving 45 or 50 mph. He said the other driver should ‘use better judgment,’” the Dallas News reports.
“The impact killed Pamela Maritza Mendoza, 11, Bryan Alexander Mendoza, 7, and Lizbeth Edith Mendoza, 3. Their older sister, 14-year-old Dulce Mendoza, remembers closing her eyes, wanting to rest a bit before testing for her next belt at taekwondo.”
Taylor’s vehicle slammed into the rear driver’s side of the Dodge, which caused it to spin out.
“I just heard my mom scream,” Dulce testified. “I couldn’t breathe.”
Taylor’s tale quickly fell apart once police officers investigated the crash and what led to it.
“Surveillance footage from a nearby business captured the crash. Several people in the courtroom gasped when the video footage showed the black car smash into the red one, sparks flying,” the Dallas News continues.
“Dallas police officers blamed Taylor’s speed. He was driving as fast as 98 mph and hit the brakes 1.5 seconds before the crash, records show. The posted speed limit is 35 mph. Several other drivers told police they had seen a black car speeding and weaving in and out of traffic on Singleton before the crash.”
Michelle Sharpe Anderson was on the scene at the time of the crash, and she had a hard time comprehending how someone could be driving so dangerously prior to the crash.
“I’ve never seen anyone drive that fast on Singleton or any residential street,” she recalled. “I thought, ‘Oh, my God. He’s driving so fast he’s going to kill someone.’”
Taylor was arrested about a week after the crash, and he’s being held at the Dallas County Jail in lieu of $300,000 bail. No word on what kind of sentence he’s facing if convicted.
“Several jurors dabbed their eyes when prosecutor Jennifer Balido showed them a photo of the wreckage. Each sibling was wearing a seat belt – as they did every day – and the youngest was strapped into a child seat,” the Dallas News adds.
It’s both unfathomable and infuriating that another motorist can behave so recklessly, but his lack of remorse make matters even worse. Hopefully he will be convicted and pay for his recklessness that took three innocent lives.
