Driver sentenced after street racing accident with three deaths on Texas 183 near Fort Worth

A Tarrant County court has sentenced a man to 10 years in prison for his role in a 2022 street race that left three people dead, District Attorney Phil Sorrells’ office said in a statement Thursday.

Nelson Ramirez, who was 19 at the time of the accident, collided with the victims’ car in November 2022 while racing another pickup truck on River Oaks Boulevard/Texas 183, according to River Oaks police.

Ramirez, now 21, was driving 93 miles per hour when he crashed. The speed limit on that stretch of road is 40 miles per hour, according to prosecutors.

Cindy Griffin, 37, and Madison Lake, 17, died at the scene of the accident.

Lake’s friend, 20-year-old Bishop Kline, was taken to a hospital where he later succumbed to his injuries.

🚨 More top stories from our newsroom:

→ Lawsuit: Tarrant Prison Medical Director Failed to Take Action Before Baby’s Death

→ Judge rejects request from former Trinity Valley teacher

→ Fort Worth ISD school board approves $15,000 bonus for superintendent

(Get our Breaking news.)

The second suspect, who is believed to have been racing against Ramirez, was a minor at the time of the accident; his name has not been released, authorities said.

“I lost these two beautiful girls tonight because a couple of teenagers wanted to race their trucks on the road,” Keith Lake, Madison’s father and Griffin’s boyfriend, wrote in a Facebook post at the time of the accident. “I lost my 17-year-old daughter and the woman I wanted to spend the rest of my life with.”

Ramirez pleaded guilty in April to manslaughter and racing on a highway and was sentenced at a hearing on Monday. He could have faced a maximum of 20 years in prison or at least probation on each count.