SXSW Hit-and-Run Driver Found Guilty of Capital Murder, Sentenced to Life in Prison

Photo of Rashad Owens in court, courtesy KXAN


Rashad Owens, the 23-year-old man who killed four people in a hit-and-run crash during SXSW 2014, was found guilty of capital murder Friday by a Travis County jury.

Local NBC affiliate KXAN reported this afternoon that because the state elected not to seek the death penalty, the jury had the option of sentencing Owens from 5 to 99 years.

The Killeen, Texas, resident was charged with two counts of capital murder and several counts of aggravated assault with a motor vehicle after he drove a stolen car through a temporary barricade in downtown Austin in March 2014, barreling through a crowded street and injuring numerous victims and killing four festival attendees.

As we previously reported, while more than 20 victims treated for injuries eventually recovered, the four who did not are: Steven Craenmehr, 35; Sandy Le, 26; Jamie West, 27; and DeAndre Tatum, 18.