Surveillance video shows horrifying moments young couple is killed by drag racing teens
CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) - 19 News obtained surveillance video showing the horrifying moments a pair of drag racing teens crashed into a young couple on a motorcycle last summer, killing them.
“It’s disturbing,” said Job Lesko, the victim’s stepfather. “It’s hard to watch. I don’t know how anyone can watch that and not be hurt by it.”
Surveillance video shows the moments 22-year-old Bobby Henry, and his 32-year-old girlfriend Brianca Palmer were hit by two drag racing teens last July in Cleveland’s Slavic Village.
19 News is not showing the deadly impact, but we do show the teens getting out of their cars to look at the victims and eventually leaving the scene.
“It’s unbelievable that anybody could even be a human being and he checks on them runs over to the car with the other people he was racing with and hanging out with and the girl’s wiping her car off, trying to get the scuff marks off of her car before she goes home and goes to sleep,” Lesko said. “So yeah, it’s all disgusting and the judge she’s seen that on day one and then basically said, is this all you got?”
According to a Cleveland police reports a 16-year-old girl and a 17-year-old boy were racing when the boy crashed into the couple on the motorcycle.
Both teens were charged with aggravated vehicular assault and failure to stop after an accident.
“They should have at least done two years in jail, adult jail,” said Danica Jankovich, Henry’s mother. “They should’ve probably lost their license for the rest of their lives, you gotta hold some kind of accountability. You can’t just go home and continue your life like nothing ever happened because it did happen it took two lives away.”
According to juvenile court records, the 17-year-old wasn’t charged as an adult, took a plea deal and Judge Jennifer O’Malley sentenced him to time in a group home, probation, community service, and his license was suspended.
“I think everybody with this case would tell you that she mishandled this case entirely,” Lesko said. “I mean it may be the only one she mishandled, we don’t know but she definitely messed this one up really bad.”
The Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office called the sentence “appalling” and told 19 News that the state did file a bond over motion to try the pair as adults, but the judge denied the motion.
The other driver, a 16-year-old girl, was also charged in juvenile court.
In December while on house arrest, the girl tampered with her tracking monitor and went on the run. Documents show a warrant was issued and she was taken into custody, but released shortly later.
She was back in court earlier this month and pled guilty. Right now, the courts are looking for a group home that will accept her.
“She’s getting interviewed now looking for a place to take her, but she doesn’t intend to punish her at all she wants to find a group home for her which is why we didn’t get sentencing last time she delayed it for three weeks and then if she doesn’t find a place now he told us they’d either have to send her to jail for a year and a half or home,” Lesko said.
The 16-year-old girl will be back in court for sentencing on April 4.
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