Man Killed in I-85 Hit-and-Run Was Officer at State Prison in Gwinnett

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Gwinnett Police said the driver responsible for a fatal hit-and-run wreck on Interstate 85 Tuesday afternoon turned herself into police hours after the incident.

Phray Meh, 20, was charged with vehicular homicide and hit-and-run in the accident that killed James McCrystal, 47, on southbound I-85 between Lawrenceville-Suwanee Road and Sugarloaf Parkway. The wreck happened around 5 p.m. Tuesday. McCrystal was ejected from his vehicle, police said.

McCrystal was a Georgia Department of Corrections officer at Phillips State Prison in Buford, the agency posted on Facebook.

It is with great sadness that we announce the death of Sgt. James Bryan McCrystal. Sgt. McCrystal was killed during a traffic accident while en route to assist with supervising an offender who was at a local hospital for treatment. He began his career with Phillips State Prison on September 17, 2012. The entire GDC Family extends our sincere condolences to his family and loved ones.

Police also said investigators are still piecing together details of what happened and ask anyone who may have witnessed the accident to call with info (call 678 442-5628).

According to a news release, officers found a white Dodge Dakota lying on its side. McCrystal, who was not wearing a seat belt, had been ejected, police said. While officers were, they heard numerous reports that a dark-colored SUV may have been involved.

The SUV was reportedly seen “stopped sideways on the Interstate after the collision and then quickly fled the scene,” Gwinnett Police spokesman Cpl. Michele Pihera said in a news release. It was unclear if anyone actually witnessed the accident happen.

Around 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday, the same evening, Meh went to Gwinnett County Police Headquarters to report she had been in an accident with a white truck on I-85. She was driving a black Honda Pilot.

“She told the investigator that she didn’t remember the details of the collision,” Pihera said in the news release. The investigator concluded Meh was involved in the fatal wreck.

Police believe the vehicles side-swiped each other, but are searching for other details on what happened.

(Photos: Vehicles involved in fatal I-85 wreck in Gwinnett County, July 14. Credit: Gwinnett Police PIO)