A Dallas County jury has sentenced 35-year-old Devonte Webber to life in prison for a wrong-way crash in late 2024 that killed 36-year-old U.S. Air Force veteran Joel Jusino. Investigators say a stolen SUV, allegedly driven by Webber as he tried to elude officers, slammed head-on into Jusino's car on the I-35E service road near Inwood Road. His family told reporters Jusino left behind a 4-year-old son and a girlfriend.
Verdict and sentence
The jury returned a guilty verdict and a life sentence late last week, according to NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth. Prosecutors had charged Webber with murder and with evading arrest with a vehicle causing death in connection with the fatal collision.
How the chase unfolded
Authorities say the pursuit started in Fort Worth, then continued along Chisholm Trail Parkway and Highway 183 before entering Dallas, where the stolen 2024 Jeep Wagoneer went the wrong way on the I-35E service road and crashed into Jusino's Audi, as reported by FOX 4 Dallas-Fort Worth. FOX 4 reported that the chase reached speeds up to 120 mph and that officers later recovered a handgun from the vehicle.
Victim and family
Jusino was an Air Force veteran who had moved from the Chicago area to be near his son and worked as a licensing manager while also driving for Uber, family members told the Chicago Sun-Times. Hoodline previously covered the December 2024 crash in a local piece.
Broader context
The case arrives amid growing scrutiny of police vehicle pursuit policies in Texas. Human Rights Watch found at least 106 deaths tied to vehicle pursuits in counties participating in Operation Lone Star through the end of 2024. Advocates say the verdict is likely to sharpen calls for tighter pursuit rules, while prosecutors and relatives of victims argue it holds a fleeing driver accountable for a preventable death.
