SO. 3 Football Teammates Are Killed in Crash — and Police Say Sisters Racing to Brother’s Birthday Party Caused It

NEED TO KNOW

• Three high school football players in Fayatteville, N.C., died earlier this month in a car crash
• Local police allege that a 21-year-old woman who picked up the three boys from football practice tried to race her 19-year-old sister in her car before driving off the road and striking a telephone pole
• Both sisters, Destini Genwright, 19, and her older sister Dymond Monroe, 21, were charged with four misdemeanors related to reckless driving. Monroe was also charged with three involuntary manslaughter counts

Three high school football teammates were killed in a car crash that occurred after local North Carolina police say two sisters were racing their vehicles at high speeds earlier this month and one drove off the road.

Jai-Hyon Elliot, 18, Nicholas Williams, 17, and Trevor Merritt, also 17, all died in the crash on Oct. 8, according to WTVD, WYFF and WRAL. The three teenagers played football at E.E. Smith High School in Fayetteville, N.C., which has mourned the players’ deaths in recent weeks on social media.

“We will not grieve without hope, even in the darkness the light shines,” the school’s football team wrote in a memorial post last week. “In the midst of the storm still we will overcome. We will forever celebrate and honor the lives of our 3 amazing young men, and are grateful for the experiences and memories we enjoyed with them.”

Destini Genwright, 19, and her older sister Dymond Monroe, 21, were each charged with four misdemeanor counts for racing, speeding, reckless driving and an insurance violation. 

Monroe was also charged with three felony counts of involuntary manslaughter, the Fayetteville Police Department said in a news release this week. She remains in the hospital in critical condition while receiving medical care for injuries she sustained during the crash, according to police.

Authorities alleged she was driving over the speed limit while racing her sister on their way to their younger brother’s 18th birthday party, according to reports by local ABC 11 and WRAL. PEOPLE has reached out to local police to confirm the details of the crash.

“I’ve been doing this [for] 25 years. This is certainly one of the most tragic and sad cases that I’ve seen,” Cumberland County District Attorney Billy West said in court this week, according to WRAL. “Any time young people in our community lose their lives, that makes it more tragic.” 

The prosecutor then reportedly added: “Even though there is sympathy, there also has to be accountability.”

WYFF reported earlier this month that the fatal crash happened just before 7:30 p.m. local time while Monroe was driving the three high school students from football practice in her Honda Civic. Monroe allegedly decided to race Genwright, her younger sister, who was driving another car along the same road.

Citing court documents, the outlet reported that Monroe was driving approximately 76 miles per hour in a 45 mph zone at the time of the crash — which reportedly happened when Monroe drove off the road and struck a telephone pole.

Fayetteville police said in a Facebook post that Genwright turned herself in on Tuesday, Oct. 21, and was officially charged with the four misdemeanor counts related to the fatal crash involving the car allegedly driven by her sister. Authorities said the 19-year-old was released on a $10,000 bond.

“This remains an active investigation as the FPD’s Traffic Unit continues to analyze evidence associated with this fatal crash and additional information will be released if it becomes available,” the Fayetteville Police Department said.

Photos from the team’s first game back on Oct. 17 showed E.E. Smith players carrying the jerseys of their three late teammates to midfield for the ceremonial coin toss before the game. Players wore several different versions of tributes to their late teammates, including towels and helmet stickers with the players’ jersey numbers on them, while parents wore clothes with inspirational messages on them in memory of the three teenagers.

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“Our Cumberland County Schools family is heartbroken,” Superintendent Dr. Eric C. Bracy said in a statement the day after the crash, according to WYFF. “We are deeply saddened by the tragic loss of three young men from E.E. Smith High School who passed away yesterday. All three were members of the Golden Bulls Football Team and were students, teammates and friends whose presence left a lasting impact on those around them.

Bracy added: “From the four corners of Cumberland County and beyond, we join together to wrap our arms around the E.E. Smith community. We stand with their families, loved ones, classmates, teammates and school family as they grieve this devastating loss.”