On April 4, 2024, Atlanta resident Tamara Taylor died in a car crash. Taylor had nothing to do with the crash; she was merely in the wrong place at the wrong time. Her car was hit when a driver was reportedly trying to evade police. The police said they were trying to pull the driver over for a minor traffic issue, which led to a high-speed chase.
In the year since her death, Tamara Taylor’s family has been fighting for justice. The driver who killed her is currently in court, and her family is testifying about their loss.
Charles Atkins Sr., father of Tamara Taylor, testified in a Fulton County court on Tuesday, April 15, 2025, WSB-TV reported. He told the court that he pulled up to the scene of where Ryan Hicks crashed into Taylor, and had no idea his daughter was the victim.
Atkins shared that his daughter, a mother of three, was getting food for the family. He was on his way home when he passed the scene. It was when he arrived home that he learned about the tragedy.
“The phone rang and said that Tam was dead,” he said. Atkins also revealed that his daughter was planning something special that day. “She was going to surprise my wife,” he said.
During the trial, Sgt. David Holleman told the court he tried to pull Hicks over for a broken taillight two days before the crash. The attempted stop happened in the same area where the crash would occur. As a result, Holleman attempted to pull Hicks over again on the night of the traffic collision. Again, Hicks sped off.
Georgia State Patrol took over the chase. Its vehicle was behind Hicks when he ran a red light, hitting Taylor. But Hicks’ attorney is questioning why they put so much effort into following Hicks. “This is not felony murder. This is a homicide by vehicle,” Marilyn Primovic, public defender, said.
The trial comes after multiple delays on Hicks’ part. He kept asking the court for extensions; the most recent one to use his tax refund to pay for a better lawyer, WSB-TV reported. “It’s devastated my family,” Taylor’s brother, Charles Atkins Jr. said at the time.
During the interview, Atkins Jr. said he doesn’t believe the police should have chased Hicks. “I wanted those chases definitely to stop,” he said. Although he’s against this type of police chase, Atkins Jr. told the news outlet he wants Hicks to take a plea deal and go away. “Prolonging it just goes … makes this family suffer even more.”
At the time of Tamara Taylor’s death, her oldest daughter started a GoFundMe to gather funds to help Taylor’s youngest child, who was 17 at the time of her mother’s death.
Ryan Hicks faces 12 charges, including felony murder, first-degree homicide by vehicle, and fleeing or attempting to elude.
