A 28-year-old Milwaukee man who was speeding when he crashed his car and killed his passenger in 2021 received a 15-year prison sentence Wednesday.
Before the crash, Kenneth D. Wright had 12 prior traffic violations despite never having had a valid driver’s license. And he was forbidden from making contact with 17-year-old Jamera Doyle because of a previous felony conviction.
But that didn’t stop him from getting into a car with Doyle on Oct. 16, 2021, and reaching speeds of around 83 mph before crashing his car into a light pole near Green Bay Road and Capitol Drive. The car flipped and caught fire as Doyle was thrown from the car and died.
In December 2022, he pleaded guilty to two felonies — second-degree reckless homicide and violating a no contact order — in exchange for two other felony charges getting dismissed, according to online court records.
Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Glenn Yamahiro presided over the case. After Wright’s 15-year prison sentence is served, he will spend another 10 years on extended supervision.
Shortly after the crash, Wright told first responders he was driving about 35 to 40 mph when another car cut him off, causing him to lose control of the vehicle.
A witness, however, estimated Wright’s car was going 100 mph. The car’s computer later showed it was going 83 mph with the brake applied just before the crash, according to the criminal complaint.