2025-04-03

#county/Randall #offense/manslaughter #null

AMARILLO, Texas (KFDA) - An Amarillo teen is charged with manslaughter in connection with a deadly April crash.

A Randall County grand jury indicted 17-year-old Banner Shane Strickland for manslaughter yesterday.

In Texas, manslaughter is a second-degree felony with a punishment range of up to 20 years in prison.

As we previously reported on April 3, Amarillo Police Department asked drivers to avoid the area of Canyon Drive south to Scotty Drive due to a serious crash.

DPS took over the investigation and Sgt. Cindy Barkley confirmed the crash involved two cars and one fatality.

The victim is identified as 46-year-old Jason Armstrong.

According to the criminal complaint filed September 24, Strickland caused the death of the victim by driving his car at “an unreasonable speed” in a reckless manner.

Videos obtained by DPS show Strickland driving erratically in the time leading up to the deadly crash.

Strickland’s car is seen merging into a turn lane to pass cars stopped at a red light, then running the red light itself.

After running the red light, Strickland is seen rapidly merging between lanes of traffic. Witnesses at the scene of the crash gave similar statements to officers on scene.

The court document states that data from Strickland’s car indicates he was driving between 75-80 mph when the collision took place.

The posted speed limit where the incident happened is 50 mph.