Family breathed ‘sigh of relief’ after man convicted of crash that killed grandmother, 2 kids

FULTON COUNTY, Ga. — The family of a grandmother and two of her grandchildren killed in a crash in 2016 say they are relieved after receiving a guilty verdict in the case.

Diontre Tigner, now 24, was 16 when he carjacked someone, led police on a high-speed chase through several residential neighborhoods going up to 90 miles per hour.

He crashed into Dorothy Wright’s car, as she headed to church with her two grandchildren, 12-year-old Cameron and 6-year-old Layla.

Tigner is now facing the possibility of life in prison after a jury found him guilty on all 15 charges on Thursday, including felony murder. It took less than an hour for them to deliberate.

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Channel 2′s Tyisha Fernandes spoke exclusively to the family on Friday.

“It was a sigh of relief. I was like thank you, thank you. I was happy,” said Joi Partridge, the mother of Cameron and Layla and Dorothy Wright’s daughter.

The verdict brought some closure to the family.

It took eight years for them to get justice because Tigner ran away from the deadly crash scene back in January 2016, and he stayed on the run for five years until he got caught up in another police chase.

“You would think after that traumatic experience you wouldn’t do that again, but he was still out there doing the same things. So we’re just glad he was caught and hopefully he won’t hurt another family in this capacity,” said Partridge.

Some things have changed where the crash happened on South Gordon Street in southwest Atlanta. The intersection is now a four-way stop at Rogers Avenue, instead of just two stop signs.

The city also added speed bumps throughout the entire neighborhood, so no one will be able to speed through anymore.

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Sentencing is scheduled for Monday morning. The grieving family wants the judge to sentence Tigner to life without parole.

Partridge misses her mom and children dearly. She decided to turn her pain into joy for others. She started a non-profit called The Dorothy S. Wright Foundation.

She now helps other families who lose their children and don’t have insurance.

“I started it because I know parents don’t think they’re going to lose their children, and when the unexpected happens, you don’t have the funds to bury your kids. So what we do is we provide support and comfort for families that lose their adolescent children - 25 and younger,” said Partridge.

They’ve already helped four families, but they want to help more. If you can help them on this journey, click here.

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Driver found guilty 8 years after crash that killed grandmother, 2 kids on their way to church Diontre Tigner was 16 years old at the time of the crash on Jan. 31, 2016. He’s now 24.

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