PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The 64-year-old New Jersey woman who killed a firefighter when she drove into a crowd of first responders on the Schuylkill Expressway in 2021, was sentenced to more than a decade Thursday.
Jacqueline Walker pleaded guilty to third degree murder of Belmont Hills firefighter Thomas Royds and multiple counts of aggravated assault by vehicle. She now faces 12-to-24 years in prison – nearly double the range Walker’s lawyers recommended.
Judge William Carpenter noted a lesser sentence would diminish the seriousness of the crime, saying, “every aspect of this case points to ‘who protects the protectors who are willing to endure risks.’”
“The criminal justice system must protect our first responders,” Carpenter said.
Walker, who was living in Little Egg Harbor at the time, says she was “lost and confused,” using inadequate brakes, when she drove around emergency cones and onto the shoulder of I-76 on July 24, 2021, killing Royds and injuring three other first responders.
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Authorities say she’d been pulled over by three different police departments and given directions each time.
Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele says this wasn't an accident, it was choices that were made by the defendant.
“She knew that she shouldn't be driving – the car had brakes that didn't work.”
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Walker’s son and her sister described her as a person who would help anyone any way she could, even when she needed help herself.
Walker says she wishes everyday she could change what happened, saying she has a good heart and prays for the Royds’ family regardless of the sentence.
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Royds is remembered as a father figure to many in the Belmont Hills Fire Department, including firefighter Aidan Friedman, who says he hopes people get the message to slow down around accident scenes.
“We're all there to help you,” he said. “If you see us on the roadway, please move over, slow down. You know, we're all people, we're all normal people, we're disguised to put the uniform on and we all love what we do.”