In Cleveland, near Fulton Road, a tragic crash occurred resulting in the death of 70-year-old Dr. Curtis Birchall from Akron, who was pronounced dead at the scene.
Today, Jalen Jackson, a 24-year-old man who admitted guilt to multiple charges related to the fatal 2023 wrong-way crash involving a stolen Amazon van on I-90 in Cleveland, is undergoing sentencing.
The sentencing proceedings are being overseen by Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge Brian Mooney, and live coverage of the hearing can be accessed through this article, WKYC+, and our YouTube channel.
His punishment comes one month after pleading guilty to the following charges:
- One count of involuntary manslaughter
- One count of aggravated robbery
- One count of discharge of a firearm on or near prohibited premises
- One count of failure to comply with an order or signal of a police officer
- One count of having weapons while under disability
The Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office, which said Jackson also pleaded guilty in two unrelated cases, faces between 26 to 34 years in prison.
The case dates back to Dec. 6, 2023, when the prosecutor’s office says Jackson approached an Amazon worker at gunpoint near Summit Park Road and Cleveland Heights Boulevard in Cleveland Heights and stole the employee’s van.
After the victim called authorities, the Cleveland Heights Police Department saw Jackson driving the stolen Amazon van and attempted to execute a traffic stop, but he fled at speeds up to 100 mph.
“During the pursuit, he fired shots at CHPD officers,” according to the prosecutor’s office. “He then entered I-90 West, driving into oncoming traffic with his headlights off. He continued to drive the opposite way until he hit a vehicle head-on.”
That crash, which happened near Fulton Road in Cleveland, resulted in the death of 70-year-old Dr. Curtis Birchall from Akron. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
That’s when Jackson got out of the vehicle and attempted to flee on foot, but police say he was quickly arrested.
