Speed caused the fatal Christmas night crash that killed three Geneva teens and injured two others.
Though Geneva police investigators have not concluded, nor formally released the accident report, Lt. Michael McDuffie on Thursday issued some of the initial findings. Cassidy Dunn, Emilee Fain, and Addyson Martin, all 16 and longtime friends, died in the accident.
The Geneva High School students were killed, and the other two girls were hurt, around 6 p.m. Christmas night. Geneva Police Lt. Michael McDuffie stated the girls were inside a Lincoln MKZ when they topped a hill, ran off Westville Avenue and moved into an oak tree. There were no other cars involved, and McDuffie stated they possibly diverged to avoid a deer.
The roof of the car had to be slashed away in order to remove the girls from the vehicle.
McDuffie stated Addyson was driving, and Cassidy and Emilee were sharing the other front seat. They were not wearing seatbelts. Emilee’s sister, Mollie Fain, and Emma Justice were in the back seat. They both were wearing seat belts. One of the backseat passengers hospitalized to UAB Hospital with serious injuries but McDuffie said her prognosis is good. “They had her up walking the other day,’’ he stated.
McDuffie stated alcohol, drugs and distracted driving were none of the reasons involved in the crash. The posted speed limit in that area was only 25 miles per hour, and he stated that the girls were traveling “well above that” given the damage to the vehicle. There were no skid marks or any other indications of braking.
Though they had spent time with their families on Christmas Day, they had later gotten together at a friend’s house and were headed somewhere else after that gathering. Their deaths shocked the community of about 4,500 people.
The girls not only went to school together, but they also used to attend First Baptist Church Geneva. Funerals of the three took place on Saturday, Sunday and Monday.
