Two years after a pedestrian was struck and killed by a sedan in Hybla Valley, the alleged driver is facing criminal charges.
An unnamed 16-year-old has been charged with manslaughter and hit-and-run — both felonies — for their role in the March 10, 2024, crash that killed 63-year-old James Johnson, the Fairfax County Police Department announced yesterday (Thursday).
The teen suspect, who was 14 years old at the time of the incident, is believed to have stolen a vehicle from the 7900 block of Sausalito Place in Woodlawn the night before the crash.
After initially evading police in the stolen 2015 Hyundai Sonata sedan, the driver was spotted around 12:30 a.m. on March 10 traveling at a high rate of speed on Janna Lee Avenue. Police say the teen sideswiped at least one vehicle near Tamarind Street before ditching the sedan and fleeing on foot.
“Officers followed the direction the driver was traveling and located the stolen vehicle crashed into a dumpster and unoccupied,” the FCPD said.
Johnson appeared to have been struck in the roadway on Janna Lee Avenue — before the suspect crashed the vehicle into the dumpster, police said. He was transported to a local hospital where he was later pronounced dead.
The suspect, who has also been charged with one count of receiving stolen property, remains in custody at the Fairfax County Juvenile Detention Center.
