Jury finds McAlester man guilty on 4 counts of manslaughter

May 8—A Pittsburg County jury found a McAlester man guilty on four counts of manslaughter Wednesday following a three-day trial.

Court records show Javen Ray Springs, 37, was charged with four counts of first-degree manslaughter in January 2022 for the September 2021 deaths of Meghan D. Ransome, 30; Christopher B. Carrion, 30; a 13-year-old boy; and a 14-year-old boy.

According to Oklahoma law, a homicide is manslaughter in the first degree "when perpetrated without a design to effect death by a person while engaged in the commission of a misdemeanor."

The charges filed against Springs allege the man was driving a 2019 Genesis G-70 with a suspended driver's license, a misdemeanor, on Sept. 12, 2021.

Records show the charge was amended two weeks prior to the trial to reflect Springs was driving under suspension.

The original charges contained three alternative pleadings, alleging Springs was driving under the influence of methamphetamine, or in the alternate, committing the misdemeanor crime of reckless driving along with driving under suspension.

According to the prosecution's motion to amend the charges against Springs, the prosecution believed that having multiple theories could confuse a jury and would have the potential to cause "undue prejudice" against Springs.

Springs' defense attorney, Wes Cherry, did not object to the last-minute amendment of the charges against his client, records show.

The jury recommended Springs to serve 20 years in the custody of the Oklahoma Department of Corrections for each count.

Troopers said in a press-release sent following the accident that the 2019 Genesis was traveling westbound on SH-31A when it departed the highway to the right and struck a tree before rolling one and a half times and landing on its top before catching on fire.

The report states Ransome, Carrion, and the two children were all pronounced dead at the scene.

Springs was transported by medical helicopter to a Tulsa hospital with internal injuries, according to the report.

According to the press release, seatbelts were "equipped; not in use by all."

A formal sentencing date was not scheduled as of Wednesday afternoon for Springs.