Suspect in SXSW deadly hit-and-run charged with 20 counts of assault

Prosecutors filed 20 new aggravated assault charges Tuesday against Rashad Owens, the man accused in a deadly driving spree that startled crowds at the South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas, last month.

Two people on a motorcycle died at the scene of the March accident and two others later died at a hospital.

Owens, accused of driving with a blood-alcohol level about 0.03 above the legal limit, could face additional charges before his case reaches a grand jury this year. The 21-year-old already faces a murder charge that could lead to the death penalty if he is convicted.

Owens allegedly fled from police at a DUI checkpoint. He raced through streets, squeezed through a gas station and eventually barreled through a barricade, striking the late-night SXSW festivalgoers outside the Mohawk nightclub.

Witnesses told police that they heard the car rev up and accelerate as it approached the mass of people. The brake lights never came on, police said, citing video footage. The car sped on, leaving behind motionless bodies along the closed-off street, went through a park and came to rest in a parking lot, according to court documents.

Owens told police he was wanted on kidnapping charges, and the gray 2012 Honda Civic he was driving had been stolen earlier that day, police said. Owens is expected back in court April 9.

Those killed were Jamie West, 27, Steven Craenmehr, 35, Sandy Thuy Le, 26, and DeAndre Tatum, 18.

The charges filed Tuesday named each of the 20 surviving victims and noted their injuries. Those injuries included, according to court files, concussions, cuts, bruising, a fractured skull with internal bleeding, broken back bones and missing teeth.

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