APD offers additional information on deadly crash

ALBANY — The Albany Police Department is continuing its investigation into a single-car accident that occurred early Sunday involving two Albany brothers that left one dead and the other in critical condition.

The passenger of the vehicle, Karon Grier, 17, was pronounced dead on the scene, and the driver, Kyree Grier, 19, is in critical condition after the 2007 Saturn Ion they were traveling in struck two trees, according to officials.

Reports indicate, Kyree Grier was driving south on South Valencia Drive approaching West Lincoln Avenue when he accelerated quickly, leaving tire marks on the road, and then lost control of the vehicle.

According to reports, the vehicle rotated counterclockwise, hit the east curb, became airborne and struck two trees. The driver was transported to Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital’s Emergency Center for treatment and later taken to surgery for a serious head injury.

“Karon Grier died at the scene,” Dougherty County Coroner Michael Fowler said Monday. “At first, APD thought the driver may have been shot because of the nature of the head injury, but I haven’t seen any bullet wound. There was a wound to his head, but I believe it was from something in the car, possibly the rearview mirror.”

The Albany Police Department had originally sent out a press release Sunday morning around 7 a.m. announcing that the investigation had been “updated to a homicide,” but later redacted that statement labelling the incident a “fatality.”

“No bullet wound was found after the driver went to surgery,” said the redacted APD press release. “He remains in critical condition. This is only a fatality.”

According to officials, the cause of the crash is not yet known. The case remains under investigation.

“It is unknown as to why the driver accelerated and crashed the vehicle,” an APD spokesperson said. “The on-call investigator and crime scene technician were called out because of the possible nature of the head injury to the driver.”