The four boys killed in a crash on Interstate 95 early Monday might still be alive if not for a factor that is especially prevalent in fatal teen accidents: speed.
Speeding is a common element of fatal crashes, but much more so with crashes involving young people. Since 2017, speeding was found to be a contributing factor in about 43% of teen fatalities in North Carolina, compared to 24% of fatal crashes overall, according to data compiled by the Division of Motor Vehicles.
The State Highway Patrol says 17-year-old Alan Lee Lockamy was clocked going more than 100 mph before he lost control of the Kia Soul and hit several trees at the Brogden Road exit in Smithfield.
Lockamy and his three passengers, Christopher Wayne Jackson, Freddy Seras and Semaj Lejai Williams, were killed.
All four were current or former students at Smithfield-Selma High School. Jackson and Seras were 17, and Williams was 16.
Investigators have not said what other factors might have contributed to the crash, which took place shortly after 2:30 a.m. Monday. Lockamy was headed northbound on I-95 when he apparently tried to take the Brodgen Road exit, which curves sharply. A sign at the exit lists a suggested speed of 25 mph.
Teens killed in NC car crashes
Car crashes killed 95 North Carolinians between the ages of 15 and 19 in 2022, the most recent year for which data is available, according to the DMV. Speed contributed to 44 of those deaths.
Alcohol, meanwhile, was a factor in 16 deaths, or 15.8%, lower than the rate for adults. Alcohol was a factor in 25.1% of traffic fatalities for all age groups.
Mark Ezzell, director of the Governor’s Highway Safety Program, said the novelty of driving a powerful machine, combined with inexperience and impulsiveness, make speeding a more common risk for teens.
“It’s a great thrill,” Ezzell said in an interview. “And we understand the dangers associated with that kind of thrill-seeking behavior. But we tend to understand it more as adults than we do as young people.”
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