CHARLOTTE — A man pleaded guilty Thursday to five counts of second-degree murder in a wreck that killed five people on July 3, 2020.
Prosecutors said that Dakeia Charles was drunk and driving more than 100 mph on the outer loop of Interstate 485 near W.T. Harris Boulevard. He weaved in and out of traffic and sideswiped a box truck, causing the driver to lose control.
The chain reaction sent the box truck into a car, killing four people.
Matthew Obester, his wife, Andrea, and their two young daughters, Elizabeth and Violet, were killed.
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The truck hit another vehicle killing a passenger, Mark Barlaan, in that car.
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Charles was sentenced to between 20 and 27 years in prison.
“I still have their horses, you know,’ said Lynn Sherill, Obester’s family member. “I’ve made memorial gardens at my farm in memory of them, so the sadness is always there.”
The family had a bit of closure Thursday.
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“Today was his sentencing and we’re happy it’s over and yet it’s never really over in our hearts,” Sherill said. “I don’t believe in life for life. I think life is suffering and for him to be imprisoned is suffering.”
The only survivor of that family was the couple’s 17-year-old son, who spoke to Charles in court during the hearing.
“He wanted to look Dakeia Charles in the eye and tell him, you took my four family members,” Sherill said. “I’m very proud of him for that.”
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Sherill hopes that Charles has learned his lesson and believes he could be a powerful voice against drunken driving once he gets out of prison.
“If he could find a way to put his voice out there to teach other people not to do what he’s done, that would be a good thing,” she said.
(VIDEO: ‘They’ll be missed dearly’: 4 family members among 5 killed in crash on I-485 in north Charlotte)
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