Teen driver sentenced after Queens crash killed 14-year-old
A 16-year-old driver lost control of a BMW at North Conduit Avenue and 160th Street in Queens on May 17, 2023; the official record lists the crash at 6:38 p.m., and police identified his passenger as 14-year-old Fortune Williams.
Location reported in Open Data.
What We Know
A 16-year-old driver lost control of a BMW on North Conduit Avenue near 160th Street in Queens on May 17, 2023. Reports differ on the first contact: the Daily News, citing police sources, said the BMW was clipped by a moving white box truck before the driver collided with a parked UPS truck; CBS News described video showing the driver lose control during a lane change and collide with the parked UPS truck, then a tractor-trailer. Prosecutors later said he was traveling over 100 mph in a 30 mph zone. Fortune Williams, 14, was a passenger and died. She attended Springfield Gardens High School, took nursing classes and hoped to become a doctor. The driver pleaded guilty to manslaughter, assault and other charges and received youthful offender status and up to four years in prison in 2025.
Reports differ on the first contact
The Daily News, citing police sources, said the driver tried to pass a moving white box truck. It reported the BMW was clipped by that truck before the driver collided with a parked UPS truck near 160th Street.
CBS News described security footage showing the driver lose control while changing lanes and collide with the parked UPS truck, then a tractor-trailer. The reports differ on whether a moving box truck was involved before the UPS truck, and do not reconcile the accounts.
Prosecutors later said the driver was traveling over 100 mph in a 30 mph zone. The official record lists driver inexperience and unsafe speed among the contributing factors for the BMW.
The crash happened near the Belt Parkway
The official record places the crash at North Conduit Avenue and 160th Street in Queens. CBS News located the scene in Springfield Gardens, just off the Belt Parkway, and reported that neighbors described frequent speeding and crashes along the stretch.
Fortune Williams hoped to become a doctor
Police identified 14-year-old Fortune Williams as the BMW passenger. The New York Post reported she was pronounced dead at the scene. CBS News reported that Williams attended Springfield Gardens High School, took nursing classes and hoped to become a doctor.
Her mother, Keisha Francis, told CBS News that Williams loved music and dancing. Francis recalled their last call: “Mom, I love you.” The family was preparing for Williams's honor roll ceremony and her June 4 birthday.
The record lists three vehicles
The official record identifies a 2005 BMW sedan, a parked 2009 Freightliner UPS truck and a 2012 Volvo tractor truck. The New York Post identified the BMW as a red 2005 BMW 325i.
CBS News reported that a delivery driver was beside the UPS truck and was knocked to the ground. It said the UPS driver and the 16-year-old BMW driver were taken to hospitals, while the tractor-trailer driver was not injured.
The driver and his parents faced court consequences
Gothamist reported that the driver pleaded guilty to manslaughter, assault and other charges in May 2025. On August 1, 2025, a judge granted him youthful offender status and sentenced him to up to four years in prison. Prosecutors did not name him.
The New York Post reported that the driver's parents, Sean Smith and Deo Ramnarine, pleaded guilty to child endangerment charges in 2024. Both were ordered to attend 26-week parenting courses, and Smith received three years of probation.