Three New Jersey men have declared their innocence and refused a plea deal in the deaths of a young couple whose car they plowed into at 118 mph while evading police earlier this year.
Carlos Martinez, 18, Jake Beauchamp, 20, and Ryan Rivera, 18, are indicted on 41 counts, including two each of first-degree aggravated manslaughter. The plea option would be open to them until court hearings on Dec. 5, the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office told NJ Advance Media.
The three allegedly livestreamed themselves joyriding as they sped near the Jersey Shore in a souped-up white BMW on March 7, investigators said.
Police in Toms River spotted them whipping across Thomas Mathis bridge at around 10:45 p.m. but couldn’t get them to pull them over. They called off the pursuit and alerted law enforcement in neighboring towns.
The BMW rocketed through a few towns at more than 100 mph and looped around in Seaside Heights back toward Toms River, authorities said. At 10:58 p.m. the car blew through a red light at Routes 166 and 37 at 118 mph and T-boned a Toyota Camry driven by 23-year-old Evan Fiore, with girlfriend Kiley Armstrong, 21, in the front passenger seat.
The young couple, who family and friends said were headed for marriage, were killed instantly. Armstrong’s twin sister, Krista, was in the backseat with her boyfriend, Ryan Chapman, 19. They were critically injured and spent two weeks in the hospital.
Martinez was 17 at the time, unlicensed, and allegedly behind the wheel. He was charged on March 13 with two counts of aggravated manslaughter and 16 other crimes and has since agreed to be tried as an adult, the Asbury Park Press reported. His two buddies were charged in July. All three face decades in prison.
Beauchamp’s plea deal might have capped his sentence at 20 years, public defender Elizabeth Martin told NJ Advance Media, adding that she plans to try to get some counts dismissed. Rivera’s attorney did not discuss his client’s plea.
Martinez, who was offered 30 years in state prison for two counts of aggravated manslaughter and assault, “maintains his innocence,” attorney Reid Weinman told NJ Advance Media. “We imagine this case will go to trial.”
