ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — St. Petersburg Police arrested Nikia Killens, 17, and her mother, Eloda Hogan, last week on charges related to an August crash in St. Petersburg that killed two teenage passengers.
Police said Killens was driving her mother's 2013 Buick Rendezvous east on 11th Avenue South around 12:30 A.M. on August 6 when the crash happened. St. Petersburg Police said Killens ran a stop sign while driving around 50 miles per hour when the crash happened.
Killens's car hit a raised intersection and went airborne before hitting a telephone pole on the passenger side of the SUV. After hitting the pole, the SUV spun to a final position facing southwest in the eastbound lane with severe damage to the passenger side.
One of the teen passengers, later identified as Brice Lewis, 18, was partially ejected in the crash. He was pulled from the wreckage by Good Samaritans in the area who responded to the crash. Another passenger, Shaariyah Brown, 14, was also pulled from the SUV.
Lewis died at the scene, while Brown was taken to a local hospital before passing away from her injuries.
The mother of Brice Lewis found out about his death through social media.
"I started scrolling on Facebook, and I saw a post indicating that there was an accident. And they described my child's clothing. They described the other people that was in the vehicle. And that's how I found out through Facebook," Brice's Mom Alfrieda Lewis told ABC Action News earlier this year.
St. Petersburg Police said Killens was the driver based on witness statements and her DNA found on the driver's side airbag that deployed.
Police later found that Killens did not have a valid driver's license at the time of the crash. Killens was charged with two counts of driving without a license causing death. Her mother was charged with allowing an unlicensed driver to operate her vehicle causing death.
