UPDATE
Nov 20, 2023 3:03 PM CST
Three teenage girls involved in the dragging death of a woman whose arm was severed during a carjacking in New Orleans last year pleaded guilty Monday to reduced charges and were sentenced to 20 years in prison. Briniyah Baker, 17; Lenyra Theophile, 16; and Mar'Qel Curtis, 16, pleaded guilty to attempted manslaughter, the Times-Picayune reports. A fourth suspect, 18-year-old John Honore, still faces a second-degree murder charge, which carries a life sentence. All four had been slated for trial Monday. The four ranged in age from 15 to 17 when they were charged as adults in the March 2022 killing. Authorities said Linda Frickey, 73, died of blunt force injuries after she became entangled in a seatbelt as carjackers sped away with her car.
Mar 23, 2022 11:45 AM CDT
Four teens are facing murder charges in a "heinous and unthinkable" fatal carjacking in New Orleans on Monday—after two sets of parents turned them in. A 17-year-old male, 16-year-old female, and two 15-year-old females will be charged with second-degree murder in the death of 73-year-old Linda Frickey, who was wrapped up in a seat belt and dragged from her SUV for a block, reports the AP. Her arm was ultimately severed, and the grandmother—whom family members describe as an "angel"—bled to death in the street around 1:30pm as witnesses attempted to comfort her.
At a Tuesday press conference, Police Superintendent Shaun Ferguson commended the parents who made the "incredibly difficult decision" to identify their children hours after surveillance footage was released, per NOLA.com. "The parents of one 15-year-old female immediately called our investigators," Ferguson said. He added the parents of the male, the suspected driver, also identified their son, per NOLA.com. Ferguson noted he would ask the Orleans Parish District Attorney's Office to charge the teens, who had prior arrests, as adults. "I mean, look at the nature of the crime," he said. "Look at the brazenness, in broad daylight, with no regard to this woman hanging from the vehicle."
story continues below
District Attorney Jason Williams added his office would prosecute anyone involved in the "heinous and unthinkable" murder "to the absolute fullest extent of the law." "It's just beyond comprehension. It's evil," said Frickey's sister-in-law Kathy Richard, per WVUE. She said Frickey was due to join her husband in retirement in a month's time and was looking forward to her son's wedding next year. Frickey's sister, Jinny Griffin, added Frickey would have simply "walked away" if the teens had allowed her the time, per NOLA.com. City councilmen described a violent "pandemic in our streets" on Monday. There have been at least 62 homicides in the city this year, a 47% increase from 2021. (More murder stories.)
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
