A former D.C. firefighter is going to prison for his role in a drag race that killed an uninvolved driver four years ago.
A D.C. Superior Court judge has accepted the guilty plea of 26-year-old Ryan Thompson and sentenced him to 2 1/2 years in prison for the negligent 2015 homicide. Thompson was a member of the D.C. fire department at the time of the crash.
Matthew Roth, a 24-year-old from Arlington, was killed in the crash, which happened on 16th Street Northwest on July 19, 2015, around 3:30 a.m.
Police said the crash occurred when another racing driver, Rasheed Murray, swerved his car to avoid Thompson’s car. Murray’s car jumped the median and crashed head on into Roth’s car.
Eyewitnesses said the racing drivers approached speeds of 90 mph in a 30 mph zone.
Murray also pleaded guilty and is scheduled to be sentenced in February 2020.
