Pregnant victim held man's hand until he died after alleged racing crash, attorney says

ATLANTA — The lawyer for a pregnant woman accused in a deadly street racing crash says she cries every time she speaks about that night.

That woman’s attorney told Channel 2’s Nicole Carr that she was just a witness, not a racer.

“At the end of the day we're sure it's going to show that she wasn't racing, nor was Shawn,” defense attorney Mark Issa said.

Carr spoke with half of the defense team Monday about an alleged drag racing crash that killed 20-year-old Ramish Attai last fall.

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Jade Dibaje, a southeast Atlanta woman, and Shawn Jones Jr., an Atlanta police officer, were charged with vehicular homicide and racing in February.

Channel 2 Action News has confirmed the pair turned themselves in on Thursday, two months after the Georgia State Patrol filed those charges.

"Unfortunately she is enduring a high-risk pregnancy where she was on bed rest. So thankfully the D.A.'s office was very understanding and assisted us in getting the process of getting her booked in and booked out in a way that at least helped somebody in that condition,” Issa said.

The D.A.'s office also told Carr that Jones' severe injuries played a role in the $25,000 bond set last week.

Jones, a five-year police veteran and son of a recently-retired APD commander, remains with APD amid the investigation.

Carr learned Dibaje, Jones and Attai were close-knit friends, coming from a midtown club.

“Upon impact, she was the next person there who held the guy's hand until he passed away,” Issa told Carr. “She can't spend a moment talking about it without crying.”

Issa maintains Dibaje was simply a witness, not a drag racer.

In a matter of days, the team expects black box information to tell the story of what happened with those Dodge Challengers along Peachtree.

“The time that's passed has created a lot of skepticism for folks who are watching this case, but for us, we want to see what they pull together, what the evidence is going to be,” Issa said.

Carr asked the Georgia State Patrol what speeds led to racing charges, but they would not provide any details, pending litigation.

A grand jury is expected to meet on the case in less than 30 days.

Cox Media Group