ST. LOUIS, MO  (February 10, 2026) — Marshawn Stepney, 21, was sentenced on Tuesday to 25 years in the Missouri Department of Corrections after pleading guilty to five counts of second-degree murder, two counts of first-degree assault, one count of first-degree tampering, and one count of felony leaving the scene of an accident for his role in causing a crash that killed five people and seriously injured two children.

On May 6, 2022, Stepney was driving a stolen gray 2015 Jeep Cherokee that had been involved in numerous thefts from vehicles across the St. Louis metropolitan area. Near the intersection of Delmar Boulevard and Union, the Jeep drove erratically and sideswiped a gray Infiniti QX56 before fleeing the scene east on Delmar at a high rate of speed. The driver of the Infinity called 911, and a passenger in the Jeep fired shots at the Infinity, as the Infinity’s driver attempted to get the license number to report to the police. Officers responded to the area and attempted to deploy spike strips to slow the Jeep, Stepney continued driving the vehicle east on Delmar at speeds approaching 80 miles per hour before running a red light at the intersection of Delmar and Pendleton and striking the victims’ minivan.

The crash killed five occupants of the minivan: Lahronda Simmons, 34, Luther Simmons, 44, Ephriam Simmons, 47, Anngelique Simmons, 52, and Takira Thompson, 11. Two other occupants, an 8-year-old girl and a 16-year-old girl, sustained injuries requiring hospitalization.

Stepney immediately ran from the crash, but hours later returned to the scene and was captured on a resident’s doorbell camera asking the resident to call his mother to pick him up. Stepney was identified from the video and other evidence, tracked to a home 12 days later, and arrested after a foot pursuit. 

“This defendant showed no regard for the citizens of this city when he chose to drive recklessly in a stolen vehicle and turned city streets into a deadly crash site. Five members of the same family lost their lives, and two children suffered serious injuries because of those choices, “said Circuit Attorney Gabe Gore. “No sentence can deliver true justice for a family that endured such an unimaginable loss, but today’s outcome ensures accountability for the harm he caused.”

Special Assistant Circuit Attorneys Terrence O’Toole Sr. and Terrence O’Toole, Jr., General Felonies Unit Supervisor Robert Huq, and Assistant Circuit Attorney James Hackett prosecuted the case.



The defendant’s case number is 2422-CR00220.