According to the Ingham County Prosecutor's office, a 19-year-old man has been charged with reckless driving causing death and reckless driving causing serious impairment of a bodily function in connection with a five-vehicle crash that killed one person and sent 12 others to the hospital in April of last year.
John Velasquez-Hicks was arraigned Monday on the felony charges stemming from the April 24 crash near South Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Mary Avenue in Lansing.
The crash killed a 15-year-old and injured 12 other people, according to the Ingham County Prosecutor's Office. The victims' ages ranged from 3 to 52 years old, with injuries varying from minor to critical.
Lansing Police Department officials said the crash happened around 8:30 p.m. when two vehicles were traveling south on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard at high speeds. The vehicles crashed into a car making a turn near Pierce Road.
The impact pushed the vehicles into the northbound lanes, where they struck two additional cars. Two people in one of the speeding vehicles were ejected from the car.
Velasquez-Hicks is represented by attorney Michael J. Nichols. He has a probable cause conference scheduled for Jan. 22 at 9 a.m. and a preliminary examination set for Jan. 29 at 8:30 a.m., both before Judge Kristen D. Simmons.
A second defendant connected to the incident has also been charged, but that case has not yet been arraigned. An attorney has filed an appearance on behalf of that defendant. Officials plan to release that person's name after the arraignment, which is expected the week of Jan. 20.
The case is being prosecuted by the Ingham County Prosecutor's Office, with Officer Anthony Vandevoorde of the Lansing Police Department listed as the investigating officer.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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