ATLANTA — A man found guilty of murder for causing a 2016 crash that left a grandmother and her two grandchildren dead in College Park was sentenced on Monday.
Diontre Tigner faced 15 counts in the crash that killed 75-year-old Dorothy Wright, her 12-year-old grandson Cameron Costner and her 6-year-old granddaughter Layla Partridge. He was found guilty on all charges.
On Monday, Tigner was sentenced to life in prison plus six years.
The grandmother and the two children were hit by a driver being chased by College Park Police while they were on their way to church on Jan. 31, 2016. Family lawyers have characterized the chase as a "reckless high-speed pursuit," and at one point, they sued College Park, as well as the City of Atlanta, over the crash.
On Monday, the father of Layla Partridge noted he believes Tigner got off easy. He told 11Alive, "Everybody is looking for an excuse for this young man; meanwhile, we got kids we left in the cemetery; they didn't ask for that."
Meanwhile, the children's mother said, "I'm glad he got life."
Tigner's sister even spoke on the sentencing, adding, "I'd just like the court to be lenient because that is my last baby brother, so I just don't know what to say; my heart is torn for my family and their family."
According to the College Park Police account, officers began chasing the car just after 9 a.m. on the morning of Jan. 31, 2016, responding to a reported auto theft at the Westin Hotel near Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Police said at the time they attempted to pull the driver over, but he didn't stop. He was then chased to the intersection of South Gordon Street and Rogers Avenue, where the crash occurred.
For nearly six years following their deaths, the children's mother and daughter of Wright, Joi Partridge, begged the driver who ran off to come forward. Tigner was finally taken into custody by officers on the evening of Dec. 23, 2021.
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