Teens Face More Charges In Deadly Walled Lake Hit-And-Run: Prosecutors

WALLED LAKE, MI — Prosecutors added more charges against two teens who were charged in connection to a Walled Lake crash that killed a 13-year-old girl in March.

Gavin Anthony Kassab, 19, of Commerce Township and a 15-year-old boy from West Bloomfield, who has not been identified by officials, are now charged with manslaughter and reckless driving. In addition, prosecutors plan to ask a court to try the 15-year-old as an adult.

Both teens now face the following charges: manslaughter (a felony charge that carries up to 15 years in prison and a fine of up to $7,500), reckless driving causing death (a felony charge that carries up to 15 years in prison and/or a $10,000 fine), first-degree fleeing and eluding causing death (a felony charge that carries up to 15 years in prison and up to $10,000 fine) and two counts of second-degree fleeing and eluding.

On March 22, police said the 15-year-old boy was speeding in a 2023 Jeep Gladiator that ran a red light while fleeing police and slammed into two vehicles near the intersection at Maple Road near Decker roads in Walled Lake.

Officials said the driver was speeding at 98 miles per hour and drove through multiple red lights just before slamming into multiple vehicles at the intersection. Officials also said the Kassab, the passenger in the Jeep, was recording the police chase live on social media just before the crash.

The Gladiator smashed into a 2010 Honda Fit near the intersection, critically injuring a 13-year-old Commerce Township girl and seriously injuring her 51-year-old mother and 10-year-old sister, officials said.

The mother and her two daughters were taken to a nearby hospital, where the 13-year-old died, officials said.

The 10-year-old sister, who was ejected from the car, and the mother were later released from the hospital, police said.

The Gladiator also hit a 2020 Chevrolet Equinox that a 43-year-old Commerce Township resident was driving with a 10-year-old passenger at the intersection, officials said.

They were both treated for their injuries and were released Wednesday night, officials said. Police said they were both wearing their seatbelts.

The impact from the Honda hit a 2023 Cadillac STX, which was stopped at the light at the intersection, officials said.

The driver of the Cadillac STX, a 58-year-old Commerce Township woman, was treated and released from the hospital, officials said. Police said she was wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash.