A New Mexico man became so angry at two drivers racing muscle cars through Albuquerque that he chased after them, crashing into an innocent 19-year-old woman who was traveling in the opposite direction and leaving her paralyzed.
Austin Kevin Jones was driving a silver Kia on September 21, 2024, when he attempted to catch the speeding drivers. The green Chevrolet and purple Dodge continued down the road, while the young woman, who had been attempting a left turn in her orange Mitsubishi, was rushed to a hospital with catastrophic injuries.
She would spend months undergoing surgeries, struggling to breathe, and recovering enough movement to operate a powered wheelchair. More than two years later, her family says she continues to need assistance with daily care.
On October 8, 2026, a Bernalillo County jury convicted Jones of great bodily injury by vehicle through reckless driving. The Bernalillo County District Attorney’s Office announced the verdict more than two years after the collision near Gibson and Girard boulevards.
Terrible Decisions
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The Albuquerque Police Department’s original investigation placed the vehicles traveling westbound on Gibson Boulevard.
Footage captured by the department’s Real Time Crime Center showed the Chevrolet and Dodge speeding through the intersection with Girard Boulevard, followed closely by Jones’s Kia.
The young woman was traveling eastbound in her Mitsubishi, attempting to turn left onto Girard when the Kia struck the passenger side and front of her vehicle.
Both drivers were hospitalized, with police initially listing the Mitsubishi driver in critical condition.
According to contemporaneous reporting by ABQ RAW, a vehicle reportedly overturned and a gas line was damaged. Emergency crews responded, and authorities closed part of Gibson Boulevard.
The Chevrolet and Dodge continued westbound.
Witnesses initially believed all three westbound vehicles had been racing. Prosecutors later described Jones’s involvement differently: he became angry at the racing drivers and attempted to catch them.
Four Days in Court
Jones was indicted in September 2025, nearly a year after the collision. His trial began October 5, 2026, before District Judge Matthew E. Chavez.
After four days of proceedings, jurors convicted him of great bodily injury by vehicle through reckless driving, a third-degree felony.
Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman credited prosecutors Guin Ice and Carmen Gutierrez for securing the conviction.
“This young woman was simply driving her car when someone else’s reckless actions changed her life forever,” Bregman said.
“There is nothing more important than holding people accountable when their dangerous choices cause this kind of devastating harm.”
Under New Mexico law, great bodily harm by vehicle through reckless driving is a third-degree felony carrying a basic prison sentence of three years.
The sentence does not automatically increase because a victim suffers permanent paralysis rather than another injury meeting the legal definition of great bodily harm.
A separate sentencing provision allows an increase of up to one-third for qualifying aggravating circumstances, potentially raising the basic term to four years. Certain prior felony convictions can also affect sentencing.
Judges may also suspend or defer sentences in qualifying cases.
The young woman’s family has publicly expressed frustration with the three-year basic sentence, given the severity of her injuries. The publicly available court docket had not established a sentencing date, although relatives expected a hearing approximately 30 days after the verdict.
Small Victories After Catastrophic Injuries
Before the crash, the young woman worked as a caregiver, according to public updates from her family.
She suffered multiple broken bones, spinal injuries, and a skull injury. Numerous surgeries followed, along with breathing support and months in intensive care and rehabilitation.
Initially, she communicated with relatives by blinking her eyes. She later began mouthing words, but infections and other complications repeatedly interrupted her recovery.
By December 2024, her broken bones were healing, and she could eat some puréed food, although she still needed a feeding tube. Four months after the collision, she wanted to go home but was not medically ready.
In March 2025, her family celebrated her ability to sit upright independently for two minutes.
Six months later, she had regained enough movement in her left hand to operate a powered wheelchair. Her feeding tube had been removed, allowing her to eat by mouth again.
Those improvements followed nearly a year of treatment and rehabilitation. In October 2026, her family continued to describe significant physical limitations and a need for assistance with daily care.
A Familiar Mistake
Another driver’s attempt to catch suspected wrongdoers ended in tragedy in Townsville, Australia, in February 2021.
Christopher Michael Hughes was pursuing a stolen vehicle through city streets as part of a vigilante effort to catch suspected car thieves.
Hughes had been involved with a group that tracked stolen vehicles. During the chase, he reached speeds of approximately 100 mph on roads with much lower speed limits.
He lost control, crossed onto the wrong side of the road, and struck 22-year-old Jennifer Board, who was riding her motorcycle.
Board, an aspiring police officer, died at the scene.
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported that Hughes pleaded guilty to manslaughter and received a 12-year prison sentence in November 2023.
The sentencing judge rejected suggestions that Hughes was acting as a community protector, telling him, “You were acting for the thrill of the chase.”
Gregory Clubb, who was driving the stolen vehicle, was also convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to 13 and a half years in prison in 2025.
Board had no involvement in the vehicle theft or the confrontation between the drivers.