A Detroit man has been charged with murder nearly two months after a fatal Van Buren County wreck in which his passenger was killed.

Jajuan M. Gabriel, 24, also faces charges of fleeing and eluding police, driving with a suspended license causing death and reckless driving causing death, according to authorities. The charges are in connection to a Feb. 15 crash in which Carmisha Slayton, 22, of Detroit, was killed.

Slayton’s autopsy results were released within the last week, according to local media reports. The felony charges likely will require representation from a car accident lawyer.

Investigators said Gabriel began fleeing from authorities near Bridgman in Berrien County on Feb. 15. The chase stretched into Van Buren County, where it culminated in a crash with a utility pole on Van Buren County 687, according to authorities.

Slayton was airlifted from the scene to a hospital in Kalamazoo, where she later succumbed to her wounds, according to authorities. An autopsy report confirmed the crash was the cause of Slayton’s death.

Gabriel was arrested the night of the crash and he remains held in the Berrien County Jail. Online court records don’t list a bond amount for Gabriel.

Gabriel tentatively is slated to face trial in June, though the exact timing of homicide trials frequently is in flux and likely will be further complicated by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. If Gabriel is convicted at trial, despite being represented by a car accident lawyer, he could face life in prison.

Disclaimer: The Accident News article you just read includes information obtained from numerous sources. These sources include, but are not limited to, websites and press releases from law enforcement, the county coroner, fire departments, and other news outlets. While we strive to provide readers with the most accurate information, sometimes the information received is not entirely accurate. For complete details, please refer to an official police report.

The articles published contain sensitive subject matter that may be hard to read by some. We understand that losing a loved one is hard and devastating. Accident News’s decision to share the stories is to help others who may be facing the same situations by providing appropriate resources to the general public.

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