NYC couple must attend parenting class after son kills daughter in 100 mph crash

The parents of a Queens teenager accused of killing his young girlfriend in a high-speed crash last year were sentenced Monday to take a parenting class for letting the 16-year-old drive their high-performance BMW without a license.

Sean Smith, 40, the teenager’s father, and his wife, 43-year-old Deo Ramnarine, pleaded guilty to child endangerment and were ordered to complete 26 weeks of courses for their role in the horrific May 17, 2023, car crash that killed 14-year-old Fortune Williams, prosecutors said.

Smith was also sentenced to three years probation by Supreme Court Judge Michael Yavinsky.

“The parents of a 16-year-old gave their son a BMW even though he did not have the legal authority to drive it anywhere in New York City,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said in a statement.

“We allege that 14-year-old Fortune Williams is now dead due to the teen’s actions after she was ejected from the car as it crashed into a UPS delivery truck at over 100 miles per hour,” Katz said. “Parents who provide vehicles to their children and let them drive illegally can be held accountable in the event of tragedies such as this.”

The fatal accident was so severe that the red 2005 BMW 325i almost broke in half, according to police.

The teenager, now 17, whose name has not been released, faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted of manslaughter and other charges pending against him in the case.

According to authorities, the boy was riding with Williams in the passenger seat when he struck the back of a UPS delivery truck at 101 mph and spun out of control, throwing the victim through the windshield into the back of the truck and killing him instantly.

The car then crashed into an oncoming semi-trailer truck. The speed limit on the road is 30 miles per hour, prosecutors said.

The UPS driver, who was just getting into his truck, was thrown to the ground and injured.

The Queens District Attorney’s Office said Smith initially told police he bought the car for his son – even though the teenager only had a junior driver’s license and was not allowed to drive in the boroughs.

Investigators discovered that the boy regularly drove the BMW to school, which was so concerning that a school principal informed his parents about it as early as November 2022.

He was also ticketed in November 2022 for driving without a license and using a “portable electronic device” while driving, prosecutors said.