ST. LOUIS – The father of a teenager who lost her legs in a reckless driving crash recounted tying a tourniquet around his daughter’s injured legs to keep her from bleeding to death during emotional testimony in St. Louis court on Tuesday.
During opening statements, prosecutors told jurors that toxicology results revealed Daniel Riley had multiple drugs in his system the night of the crash that changed Janae Edmondson’s life forever.
Riley is facing five charges, including assault, armed criminal action, and driving without a valid driver’s license.
The crash happened in February 2023. Edmondson was 17 at the time and visiting St. Louis for a volleyball tournament. She was walking with her family downtown. Authorities said Riley, who was 21 at the time, was speeding down St. Charles Street when he failed to yield at the intersection of St. Charles and North 11th Street.
His car hit another car and a parked vehicle. Edmondson was pinned between two of the cars. Both of her legs had to be amputated. Riley was out on bond at the time of the crash in a pending robbery case, even though he had violated the conditions of his release many times.
“What I expect the evidence to show is that the defendant perceived a substantial risk causing serious physical injury. That he made more than one decision to disregard that risk,” prosecutor Adam Field said.
Meanwhile, Riley’s defense team argued Riley was T-boned that night by another speeding driver who also had a suspended license, and that police rushed to judgment about who was responsible for the crash. They’re asking jurors to look at the facts of the case.
“The evidence is the Audi was on one wheel when Daniel had been hit. Daniel gets out of the car; he is blacked out,” attorney Dan Diemer said. “He tells an officer he is blacked out. He did not know from the moment that he got T-boned what happen after that.”
James Edmondson, Janae’s father, took the stand for the prosecution on the first day of the trial. He told the court that he was walking with Janae and his wife after the volleyball tournament when they heard a roaring engine. He said they tried to run away and that’s when Riley’s Audi went airborne and pinned Janae between Riley’s vehicle and a parked car.
James said his military training kicked in, which helped save his daughter’s life.
“As I couldn’t use her blanket, I needed a belt,” he said, adding that a stranger removed their belt and handed it to him. “…And right to this day, I don’t know who that is. I want to tell him, how much I want to appreciate him for giving me this belt, because it saved my daughter’s life.
“(Janae) asked me why did this happen to her. And I didn’t have an answer. I couldn’t tell her why. And, as a father, that was pretty bad. Because I couldn’t tell her why her legs was gone.”
The driver of the other vehicle involved in the crash also testified, saying she did not remember anything the night of the incident. Several first responders and other eyewitnesses testified on Tuesday. Janae and her mother are expected to be the last witness for the prosecution.
