Howard Wright, 46, was sentenced to fifteen years, two years to be served, the remainder on probation, for a high-speed crash on South Cobb Drive that occurred in 2019.
The charge in the indictment was “Serious Injury by Vehicle.”
In her written instructions to the jurors prior to the conviction, Cobb County Superior Court Judge Kimberly Childs described the charge as follows.
Any person who, without malice, causes bodily harm to another by seriously disfiguring a member of his body, though [sic] the violation of O.C.G.A. 40-6-390 (Reckless Driving) commits the crime of Serious Injury by Vehicle.
O.C.G.A. 40-6-390 provides that any person who drives any vehicle in reckless disregard for the safety of persons or property commits the offense of reckless driving.
Wright was represented by attorney John R. Greco during the trial, and the prosecution team was led by Senior Assistant District Attorney Marty First.
Wright was convicted in a jury trial in Cobb County Superior Court on April 20 and sentenced by Judge Childs the next day.
A public information release from Cobb County District Attorney Flynn D. Broady, Jr. describes the incident leading to the conviction and sentencing as follows:
Wright’s charges stemmed from a two-vehicle accident that he caused on March 20, 2019. The victim was attempting to make a left turn onto Cooper Lake Road from South Cobb Drive. Wright was traveling Northbound and t-boned the victim while going 86 miles per hour on the 45 miles per hour road. Smyrna Police Department responded to the scene and the victim was transported to Kennestone Hospital with a serious head injury. Wright was subsequently arrested for the charges of Serious Injury by Vehicle, Reckless Driving, and Failure to Wear Seat Safety Belt charges.
The victim’s wife of thirty-seven years spoke during the proceedings, and described how the accident has affected the victim’s outlook on life.
The victim stated in his impact statement, “It seems like since my head injury I can only feel irritability, anger, and dullness.”
The public information release described the prosecution team as follows:
The District Attorney’s trial team was led by Senior Assistant District Attorney Marty First, Assistant District Attorney Jessica Leiva, Victim Advocate Crystal Vasquez, Investigator A. Allen, and Administrative Assistant Debra Griffin.
Senior Assistant District Attorney First stated, “We are hopeful that our victim’s wish for Mr. Wright to never be able to inflict such pain on anyone else comes true with today’s sentencing.”