OAKTON, Va. — After deliberating for nearly eight hours, a Fairfax County jury returned a guilty verdict in the case of a man charged with manslaughter for hitting two teenagers with his car.
Usman Shahid was charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter for the death of two Oakton High School students whom he hit with his car while speeding on June 7, 2022. Court testimony claimed that Shahid was driving 81 mph in a 35-mph zone, with passengers in his car when he hit the teens. He was 18 at the time of the crash and had a learner's permit.
Shahid crashed into another driver trying to make a left turn in the middle of a yellow blinking light. Shahid's car left the road and hit three teens who were on the sidewalk near the intersection. One teen survived the crash, while Ada Martinez Nolasco and Leeyan Hanjia Yan – both students who had just left Oakton High School – were killed.
The trial lasted a little more than a week and a half, and the crux of the case centered on the scope of police investigation, and the role of the other driver who Shahid hit with his car.
Prosecutors argued that Shahid should have known better.
“No one was contending that he set out to kill those two girls," Deputy Commonwealth Attorney Jenna Sands said in closing arguments. "He made choices. He chose to drive fast and not hit the brake."
But Shahid's attorney argued there’s no evidence that proves manslaughter. Defense Attorney Peter Greenspun claims detectives failed to properly investigate and instead put their entire focus on Shahid.
Greenspun blamed the driver of the SUV trying to make a left turn as pedestrians were nearby for causing the incident, saying that driver – Ben Phan – was aware the BMW was coming.
"There’s every bit of evidence that it was Phan who was woeful," Greenspun argued.
As for his client, Greenspun said, “Maybe you find him guilty of being a stupid kid and that he should’ve known better. That’s not criminal negligence.”
Greenspun also stressed to jurors how Phan refused to talk until before the trial when he was granted immunity.
Shahid faces up to 10 years in prison for each count. The same jury will return Thursday to hear victim impacts statements as well as additional arguments, before they bgin deliberating on Shahid's sentencing.
RELATED: Fairfax County jury deliberates case of man charged with manslaughter in death of high schoolers
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