Police make arrest two months after fatal Carroll County collision

BALTIMORE -- An arrest has been made two months after a fatal collision during a police pursuit in Carroll County.

On Friday, Jamall Steele, 33, was arrested for more than a dozen charges in connection to the crash that happened on the evening of April 20 along Liberty Road near Fallon Road.

Investigators said Steele collided into another car driven by Kayla Rodriguez Garcia, 22, of Randallstown.

Rodriguez Garcia died but a passenger in her car survived the collision, according to deputies.

"There remains a void in our hearts," the victim's mother, Yanixa Garcia said. "They don't understand the pain they caused our family."

Dash camera and body-worn camera footage released last month by the Independent Investigations Division of the Maryland Office of the Attorney General showed the moment Steele first allegedly sped past Deputy Kyle Hessler.

Moments into the pursuit, Deputy Hessler's dash camera video shows he drove up to the aftermath of the crash.

Rodriguez Garcia's vehicle was on one side of Liberty Road while the vehicle Steele was inside crashed into a guardrail on the opposite side of the major thoroughfare.

Steele was taken to the hospital for injuries sustained during the crash but was later released.

Charges he now faces include vehicular homicide while under the influence, plus driving with a suspended and revoked license.

State court records reveal the suspect has been arrested three times between January 2021 to July 2022 for driving without a license.

In 2019, court filings show Steele received a Probation Before Judgement for driving while impaired by drugs or alcohol.

"This is, in a way, the first step of justice. What would you say to her (Kayla) if you could talk to her?" WJZ reporter, Cristina Mendez said.

"I know that we can't get you back but what happened to you, my love, is gonna be heard so that it doesn't happen to anyone else, and I know she would have liked that answer," Garcia said.

Steele is being processed in jail and is expected to have a preliminary hearing late Monday morning.

Loved ones remember Kayla for being an active member in church playing the piano, the drums and being a teacher in the children's ministry.