Fatal crash at 96 mph: Milwaukee woman faces reckless homicide charges

A Milwaukee woman has been charged with first-degree reckless homicide and two counts of first-degree recklessly endangering safety following a fatal crash on May 10 near North 76th and West Marion streets.According to the Milwaukee Police Department’s Crash Investigation Unit, 32-year-old A'Jena K.B. Wynn-Howard was traveling at speeds exceeding the posted 35 mph limit. Data from the vehicle’s airbag control module showed it was traveling at 96 mph five seconds before the crash and reached 102 mph at the moment of impact.The crash claimed the life of 41-year-old Tonya Missouri-Smith and injured two others, according to a criminal complaint filed in Milwaukee County Circuit Court.The complaint details that Milwaukee police responded to multiple 911 calls reporting a three-vehicle collision. Witnesses described a vehicle split in half and another overturned with an ejection. Officers found a 2021 Jeep Wrangler, a 2019 Chevrolet Traverse, and a 2015 Jeep Patriot involved in the crash.Missouri-Smith, the driver of the Chevrolet Traverse, suffered severe rear and driver’s side damage to her vehicle and was pronounced dead at the scene by the Milwaukee Fire Department. Her son was also in the vehicle and reported pain in both hips. He told investigators they were driving to close the family business for the night when their vehicle was struck from behind. The Jeep Patriot had rear-end damage and overturned onto its passenger side. The driver said she was parked outside her mother’s residence when her vehicle was hit, causing it to overturn. She suffered a fractured vertebra and bleeding on the brain, requiring hospitalization.The Jeep Wrangler, registered to Wynn-Howard, was found more than 400 feet from the other vehicles with severe front-end damage. Officer body camera footage recorded Wynn-Howard admitting to being the driver of the Jeep Wrangler. She reportedly told police officers, "That's my car, I crashed," and later asked, "Did I kill anybody?"The Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s Office conducted an autopsy, confirming Missouri-Smith died from multiple blunt force injuries consistent with a motor vehicle collision. Wynn-Howard faces one count of first-degree reckless homicide, which carries a maximum penalty of 60 years in prison, and two counts of first-degree recklessly endangering safety, each punishable by up to 12 years and six months in prison and a $25,000 fine. Additional charges may be filed pending toxicology results.