Medical Examiner identifies three killed in crash near 24th & Silver Spring Drive in Glendale

GLENDALE (WITI) -- The Medical Examiner's Office identified on Saturday, August 9th the three people killed in a crash Friday, August 8th near 24th and Silver Spring Drive in Glendale as 48-year-old James Taddey, 47-year-old Davonna Wilson and 19-year-old Koteeri Riley.

The crash happened shortly before 8:00 p.m.

According to the Medical Examiner, Taddey was driving, Wilson was in the front passenger seat and Riley was in a rear passenger seat when the crash occurred.

After paramedics assisted the occupants — all three were declared dead at the scene.

"I knew the family very well," Gordy Lang said at the scene of the crash on Saturday, August 9th.

Besides losing a friend -- Lang says he doesn't know much else about what happened on Friday night.

"It looks like they grazed that tree over there. Got to be a terrific impact," Lang said.

Lang says he's known James Taddey and his family for a long time.

"We've been close family friends for 40 years or more," Lang said.

Lang says Taddey served in the Navy.

"I think three or four years on the USS Wisconsin," Lang said.

The bits and pieces that broke off as the car crashed through a pole, a sign and scraped the sidewalk on Silver Spring Drive were still scattered at the scene on Saturday.

Hester O'Donnell saw the aftermath of the crash as she passed by Friday night.

"Pieces of twisted metal. It's such a loss of life. It's a tragic loss of life. I mean, three people died right here," O'Donnell said.

The force of the crash was so great, a chunk of debris landed on the top of an awning some 15 feet above the ground.

"That does give you a good idea of how fast the car was going, how many times it flipped. You know, the devastation," O'Donnell said.

O'Donnell says she found a cell phone -- and is guessing it belongs to one of the crash victims. She plans to hand it over to Glendale police.

Glendale police haven't said whether speed was a factor in this crash.

The Wisconsin State Patrol was assisting with reconstructing the scene to try to figure out what led to such a violent crash.

Any members of the public who may have witnessed the accident are encouraged to contact the Glendale Police Department at 414-228-1753.