Driver charged after passenger dies at Atlantic and Court
A city crash record says unsafe speed contributed to the 3:22 a.m. collision of two sedans at Atlantic Avenue and Court Street; police told reporters Kashawn Croswell ran a red light and hit a Honda carrying Shanti Joyner, who died at 18.
What We Know
Shanti Joyner, 18, was riding in a Honda at Atlantic Avenue and Court Street in Brooklyn shortly before 3:30 a.m. on Aug. 18, 2023, when police said Kashawn Croswell drove a Mercedes through a red light and hit the Honda. The city crash record lists unsafe speed as a contributing factor and records one motorist killed and three injured. Reporters later cited police saying Croswell faced manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide and leaving-the-scene charges; police also charged Honda driver Iesha Joyner with driving while intoxicated and related offenses.
Police said a red-light violation preceded the fatal impact
The crash happened at 3:22 a.m. on Aug. 18, 2023, at Atlantic Avenue and Court Street in Brooklyn. The city record lists two sedans and says unsafe speed contributed to the crash.
Police told reporters Kashawn Croswell, 25, drove a Mercedes through a red light on Court Street and hit a Honda Accord on Atlantic Avenue. Shanti Joyner, 18, was riding in the Honda's front passenger seat and was pronounced dead at NewYork-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital.
Shanti Joyner was riding with other workers after a late shift
The Daily News reported that Shanti Joyner and Iesha Joyner, 32, were sisters returning from late-night shifts at a Brooklyn bar. A 29-year-old man was also in the Honda, and reporters said both surviving Honda occupants were expected to survive.
News accounts reported an additional passenger in the Mercedes, a 24-year-old woman, was hospitalized with injuries that were not life-threatening.
The official record and police accounts identified the two sedans
The city record lists a 2014 Mercedes sedan traveling south with two occupants and a 2019 Honda sedan traveling west with three occupants. Police accounts identified Croswell as the Mercedes driver and Iesha Joyner as the Honda driver.
Officers detained Croswell, and charges followed
Police told reporters Croswell left the scene on foot after the crash and officers apprehended him nearby. Gothamist later reported that police charged him with manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide and leaving an accident.
Gothamist also reported that police charged Iesha Joyner with driving while intoxicated, operating a motor vehicle without insurance, operating an unregistered vehicle and driving while impaired by alcohol.
Speed is in the city record; early accounts varied on the investigation
The city crash record assigns unsafe speed as a contributing factor. Several police-cited news accounts described Croswell running a red light and speeding; an early New York Post report said investigators were still determining the cause and vehicle directions.
Atlantic Avenue has a long crash record in Brooklyn
The crash happened at Atlantic Avenue and Court Street in Brooklyn. CrashCountNYC's Atlantic Avenue-Brooklyn corridor summary counted 4,096 crashes, 2,408 injuries, 109 serious injuries and 10 deaths from Jan. 1, 2022, through June 1, 2026.