Mom of teen involved in deadly Phoenix street racing crash shares daughter’s story
By Mickaela Castillo
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PHOENIX (KTVK KPHO) — A Phoenix mom is getting a lot of views on TikTok because she’s telling her story about her 18-year-old daughter, who is serving nine years in prison for her role in a deadly street racing crash.
Amy Rodriguez never thought she would be in this situation. In December, her daughter, 18-year-old Elena Rodriguez, was sentenced to nine years in prison for a street racing crash in July 2022.
“She’s a good kid, never been in trouble, great student. It can just happen to anybody. She was just getting out of work,” Amy Rodriguez said.
Police said Elena Rodriguez and Jakel Huckaby were racing each other while heading north on 43rd Avenue. Huckaby crashed into a car making a left turn at an intersection, killing four passengers, including one in Huckaby’s car. After the collision, Elena Rodriguez fled.
Her mom reported her daughter’s involvement in the collision, and Elena Rodriguez admitted that Huckaby instigated a street race. Her mom said Elena Rodriguez, at the time, didn’t know what had happened.
“She did see it in the back of her mirror so she wasn’t sure if something exploded or if there was an accident, so she wasn’t sure until the next day. That’s when I found out about it,” Amy Rodriguez said.
Amy Rodriguez, who has more than 100,000 TikTok followers, has since created several videos sharing her daughter’s story and perspective on the crash.
Those videos have gotten millions of views in just a few days. Amy Rodriguez said she hopes that sharing her daughter’s story will show other people that one bad decision can change their lives forever.
“Your action can cost you your life or other’s lives. I want kids to see every action has a consequence and unfortunately, this is my daughter’s,” Amy Rodriguez said.
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