PATCH, VA — The families of three Oakton High School students involved in a fatal crash on Blake Lane in 2023 will have to wait until September for the final sentencing of the driver convicted in the case.
On April 25, 2023, a Fairfax County Circuit Court jury convicted Usman Shahid on two manslaughter charges in connection with the deaths of Ada Gabriela Martinez Nolasco and Leeyan Hanjia Yan. Martinez Nolasco’s cousin, who was walking home with the two girls, survived the crash but was hospitalized with serious injuries.
The day after Shahid’s conviction, the same jury recommended a sentence of two years for each manslaughter count. Shahid faced a potential sentence of 10 years in prison on each charge.
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Related: Driver Sentenced In Crash That Killed 2 Oakton High School Students
Shahid was due back in court on Friday for final sentencing, but his case was continued until 1 p.m. on Sept. 6, according to court documents. Under Virginia law, Circuit Court Judge Randy Bellows cannot increase the jury’s recommended sentence of four years, but he can lessen it.
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Police say that Shahid was driving a white BMW with two passengers on June 7, 2022, when it collided with a Toyota 4Runner driven by Ben Phan. The BMW then went over the curb, hitting a fence and three pedestrians. The car came to a stop after striking a mailbox, utility box, and power pole.
Related: Father Still Grieves Loss Of Daughter Killed In Crash On Blake Lane
In June, family members of the three victims gathered at the crash site on Blake Lane at the Five Oaks Road intersection to mark the second anniversary of the incident.
People told Jie Yan that after two years the wound he felt at the loss of his 15-year-old daughter Lee Yan would be healed. But that’s not the case. Yan compared the pain he was feeling to the loss of a limb.
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“I just feel like I did the surgery,” Yan told Patch in June. “The wound is healed, but one of my legs is lost and I’m handicapped. You know what I’m feeling? My one leg is gone. I lost my one leg. That’s the feeling.”
On Feb. 23, 2024, the families of the three victims filed a wrongful death lawsuit in circuit court against Phan and Shahid, according to court records. The case remained pending on Friday.
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