Crime & Safety
Man In TX Crash That Killed 5 From Alpharetta Sentenced
A man, who was 17 years old when a head-on crash in Texas killed five family members from Georgia, has been sentenced, prosecutors say.
ALPHARETTA, GA — The man convicted in a deadly Texas crash that killed a family of five from Alpharetta has been sentenced, according to prosecutors.
On Halloween, 19-year-old Luke Garrett Resecker was sentenced to 65 years in prison in connection with a crash that killed a woman, her two children and her parents around 4 p.m., Dec. 26, 2023 in Johnson County, Texas, near Dallas.
The crash also killed the family's cousin from Irving, Texas, authorities previously said.
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The fatal crash happened after Resecker, who was then age 17, crossed lanes into oncoming traffic and hit a Honda minivan head-on, according to the Johnson and Somervell County (Texas) District Attorney's Office.
This all took place on U.S. Route 67 near County Road 1119, northeast of Nemo in the Dallas area. Resecker, from Glen Rose, was driving a 2014 Chevrolet Silverado that entered a no-passing zone at the time, authorities said in the past.
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Those killed were previously identified as Naveena Pothabathula, 36; 9-year-old NishiDharaman Pothabathula; 11-year-old Kruthik Srinarayan Pothabathula; Nageswararao Ponnada, 64; Rushil Barri, 28; and Sitamahalakhmi Ponnada, 60.
Additionally, prosecutors said a survivor was paralyzed from the waist down, and Resecker's 17-year-old passenger suffered a traumatic brain injury.
Naveena Pothabathula's husband survived the fatal crash and was in critical condition, having to undergo multiple surgeries, per a past GoFundMe for the family.
At the time, THC was found in Resecker's truck and was additionally detected in his system via a toxicology trace, prosecutors said. THC is a compound found in the cannabis plant.
Johnson County Jail records on Tuesday showed Resecker was incarcerated on charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, manslaughter (deadly weapon) and intoxication manslaughter (deadly weapon).
Prosecutors said the case was a "sobering reminder" of impaired and reckless driving impacts.
"We are deeply grateful to the jury, the officers, and the prosecutors for their dedication and hard work. This was by no means an easy case, and their commitment to seeking justice made all the difference," prosecutors said.
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