Background: News footage of the crash on Dec. 26, 2023 that killed six members of one family (WXIA). Inset (left): Luke Resecker (Texas Department of Public Safety). Inset (right): The Potabathula and Ponnada families (GoFundMe).
A Texas teenager who was high on THC when he crashed his pickup truck into a minivan carrying seven members of a family, killing six of them, will spend decades in prison.
Luke Resecker, 19, was found guilty of six counts of manslaughter among other charges on Oct. 27, nearly two years after he was behind the wheel of a pickup truck that veered into oncoming highway traffic and slammed into a minivan. Inside that minivan were seven members of one family, six of whom were killed. The lone survivor was paralyzed from the waist down. Resecker and his passenger were also injured, the latter of whom suffered a traumatic brain injury, according to the Johnson and Somervelle County District Attorney's Office.
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Resecker was also convicted of two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and six counts of driving while intoxicated. The jury sentenced Resecker to 65 years in prison.
The Texas Department of Safety identified the victims of the Dec. 26, 2023, crash who died as Rushil Barri, 28; Nageswararao Ponnada, 64; Sitamahalakshmi Ponnada, 60; Naveena Potabathula, 36; Krithik Potabathula, 10; and Nishidha Potabathula, 9. Lokesh Potabathula, 43, was the sole survivor and was critically injured. He lost his wife, two children, mother- and father-in-law, and cousin.
Atlanta-based NBC affiliate WXIA reported that the Potabathula family was visiting family in Texas for the holidays after traveling from their home in Alpharetta, Georgia. The Ponnadas were visiting from India. Barri, a cousin, was studying in Texas after moving from his home in India.
Police said that Resecker had THC in his system at the time of the crash. Authorities found THC wax, marijuana, and a vape pen in his car.
Dallas-based Fox affiliate KDFW reported that Resecker's passenger, 17-year-old Preston Glass, sustained a traumatic brain injury that left him mentally impaired.
As Law&Crime previously reported, a crash report stated that Resecker veered into oncoming traffic when he crossed the double yellow line on the U.S. 67 highway. He drove the wrong way until he hit the minivan that was being driven by Barri and carrying the Ponnada and Potabathula families.
Jerry Lambe contributed to this report.
