Overview
- A judge on July 31 sentenced 20-year-old Bjorn Keali Hartzell to 30 years after he pleaded guilty to five counts of second-degree murder and one count of endangerment.
- Authorities say Hartzell was 16 at the time of the crash and was prosecuted as an adult because the collision killed five occupants of a minivan and left one child alive.
- A crash reconstruction found Hartzell’s Jeep was traveling about 112–115 mph in a 40 mph zone when it struck the minivan near 107th Avenue and Lone Cactus Drive in Peoria.
- Prosecutors reported that a drug recognition expert observed signs of cannabis impairment, Hartzell admitted to smoking marijuana, and a court-authorized blood draw confirmed THC.
- Maricopa County officials framed the sentence as accountability for reckless, impaired driving and a warning to the public while the multi-year case highlights how severe juvenile cases can be moved into adult court.