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The collision happened on Tuesday, Jan. 11, 2022, and involved four cars that were all traveling on I-84 in Farmington, according to state police.
The crash was caused when a 2007 Ford F150 traveling in the left lane and a 2004 Chrysler PT Cruiser traveling in the center lane on I-84 East between Exits 37 and 39 collided after the Ford lost control because of an improper steering maneuver. This then caused the Ford F150 to cross the median into the westbound lanes and hit a 2003 Toyota Camry driven by Nia Justice McDougald, age 20, of Windsor, who was driving west in the left lane.
The Toyota Camry then struck a 2020 Jeep Compass that had also been traveling in the westbound lanes of I-84, causing it to tip over.
As a result of the collision, both occupants of the Toyota Camry, 20-year-old Windsor resident Nia Justice McDougald and 22-year-old Hartford resident Thomas Ross, received fatal injuries and later died in hospitals, with McDougald dying on the day of the crash and Ross succumbing to injuries on Saturday, Jan. 15, 2022.
As police continued investigating the crash throughout the following year, they eventually determined that the cause was that the driver of the Ford F150, 57-year-old Bloomfield resident Sean Jackson, lost control of the vehicle and failed to maintain his lane because he had been traveling between 77 to 84 mph, over the speed limit of 65 mph.
Authorities then determined that Jackson was at fault, and arrested him on Monday, Jan. 23 after he turned himself in to police. He is charged with the following:
- Two counts of negligent homicide;
- Speeding;
- Failure to drive in the proper lane;
- Failure to renew registration;
- Operating a motor vehicle without minimum insurance.
Jackson did not have any traces of alcohol or drugs in his body on the day of the crash, police added.
Jackson will appear in Hartford Superior Court on Friday, Feb. 3.
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