West Philadelphia

‘Maniacal' driver caused 2022 crash that killed 3, including teen, Philly DA says

Philadelphia DA Larry Krasner, on Monday, discussed the conviction of Myzeh Ross, 21, who killed three people in a West Philly crash in August of 2022, and warned that his office is 'seeing a lot' of similar incidents

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Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner, on Monday, detailed the conviction of a Philadelphia man who was found to be responsible for the deaths of three people in a West Philadelphia crash that happened in August of 2022.

"This is one of those crimes that is often so shocking and so utterly unexpected that it requires special handling and it requires, in some ways, a different skill set," he said.

On Thursday, Myzeh Ross, 21, of Philadelphia was found guilty of murder, homicide by vehicle, involuntary manslaughter and other offenses after he was behind the wheel of a car that crashed at the intersection of 52nd and Walnut streets in West Philadelphia -- killing three people -- on Aug. 14 of 2022.

According to police, Ross was traveling at a high rate of speed along 52nd Street, in a 2020 Dodge Charger -- filled with eight people -- when he crashed into a 2010 Hyundai Elantra that had three occupants.

In detailing Ross' conviction, Krasner called the driver's actions "maniacal."

And, he noted that his office has seen a rise in similar incidents.

"There is a feeling, within the DA's office, that we are seeing a lot of incidents involving criminally reckless driving, a lot of tremendous harm and we are seeing a lot of cases where there are crash homicides or severe crash injuries and the driver, drives away. Which, all by itself is a criminal act," said the district attorney.

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During the day, Krasner showed evidence that was part of the office's court case, that showed how Ross sped "at high speed" through three red lights, speeding around other vehicles, before slamming into the Hyundai, that was operating as a Lyft ride-hailing vehicle.

"This is horrific, it is beyond unacceptable," said Kranser, in prefacing videos his office presented during Monday's event.

Two of the people in the Elantra were killed, William Wilcox, 42 and Lisa Crump, 58, as well as 16-year-old Ledonis Bryant, who was a passenger in Ross' vehicle at the time of the incident.

Ross was not charged with driving under the influence of alcohol in this incident.

Several months after the crash, in December of 2022, Ross turned himself in to police. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for March 8.

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