JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Leon County deputies arrested the driver Florida Highway Patrol says is responsible for the July 2024 crash in Jacksonville that killed 7-year-old Serenity Holland.
The Leon County Sheriff’s Office says Quintarrius Donald was arrested in Tallahassee on Thursday. He’s now facing two charges in Duval County: vehicular homicide and driving with a suspended license. The sheriff’s office says he’s had two previous charges in Leon County: driving without a license and driving under the influence.
The arrest was made 10 months after Florida Highway Patrol says the crash happened as Holland’s mom was driving her and Serenity on the Buckman Bridge. The crash report says Donald hit the back of their car going 95 miles per hour, 30 miles per hour over the speed limit.
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Holland’s sister tells Action News Jax seeing an arrest made so many months after the crash hasn’t taken any of the pain from Serenity’s death away, but is helping the family heal.
“It’s just been like a long 10 months for me and my family,” said Shawndell McGriff, Serenity’s sister. “There were definitely times where I didn’t think he would get arrested.”
Florida law says vehicular homicides are second-degree felonies, which carry a prison sentence of up to 15 years. Donald hasn’t yet been convicted, but McGriff is planning to push state lawmakers to write a new law creating harsher sentences for drivers who are convicted in similar crashes.
“Life is so precious and it’s like they give people a few years for killing someone in a car accident,” McGriff said, “I want to make sure this doesn’t happen to anyone else.”
Donald was taken to the Leon County jail after his arrest. Action News Jax is working to learn when he will be brought back to Duval County to go before a judge for the charges against him.
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