ATLANTA, Georgia – Diontre Tigner, 24, has been sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole, plus an additional six years, for causing the deaths of Dorothy Wright, 75, and her two grandchildren, Cameron Costner, 12, and Layla Partridge, 6. The sentencing was handed down by Fulton County Superior Court Judge Kimberly M. Esmond Adams on Monday.
The fatal incident occurred on January 31, 2016, when Tigner, then 16, stole a Chevrolet Suburban from a Westin hotel and led police on a high-speed chase. The chase, which lasted approximately 10 minutes and reached speeds nearing 100 miles per hour, ended tragically when Tigner ran a stop sign and collided with Wright’s Buick LeSabre. Wright, a retired schoolteacher, was transporting her grandchildren to First St. Peter AME Church, a routine Sunday morning activity.
The impact of the collision was so severe that it caused Wright’s vehicle to flip over, ejecting Layla Partridge from the car. Layla’s body was not discovered for several hours, found hidden in nearby shrubbery a significant distance from the crash site, as reported by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
A Fulton County jury found Tigner guilty on all 15 counts he faced, including felony murder and leaving the scene of an accident. The jury’s decision came after less than an hour of deliberation.