Deputies say 27-year-old Jayanna Clark was going 80 mph in a 45-mph zone before running a red light and crashing into another car.
OLDSMAR, Fla. — A mother is facing criminal charges for an Oldsmar crash that killed her 6-year-old daughter and seriously hurt her 4-year-old son.
The crash happened around 4:40 p.m. on April 30 at the intersection of Tampa Road and E St. Petersburg Drive.
Pinellas County deputies say 27-year-old Jayanna Clark was driving her 2015 Nissan Altima east on Tampa Road when she ran a red light at the intersection. She crashed into a Tesla Model Y, causing significant damage to both vehicles, according to an arrest affidavit.
The Nissan’s data recorder revealed that Clark accelerated from 71 mph five seconds before the crash to 80 mph one and a half seconds before the crash, the affidavit says. She reportedly hit the brakes, but was still going 51 mph when she collided with the Tesla. The speed limit on Tampa Road is 45 mph.
Clark had her 6-year-old daughter in the back seat on the passenger’s side and her 4-year-old son in the back seat on the driver’s side. Deputies say the crash left the daughter on a ventilator and paralyzed from the neck down before she passed away six days later. The son was hospitalized with serious injuries but has since been released.
An investigation later revealed that Clark was only permitted to see the children through supervised visitation with a legal custodian present. The affidavit says Clark violated this court order by picking up the children alone and unsupervised.
She is charged with vehicular homicide and child neglect causing great bodily harm.