Daniel Izell Johnson, a 42-year-old man, died in the early hours of July 11, 2019, when a routine overnight drive turned into a nightmare on Interstate 22 near Jasper, Alabama. Just before 2 a.m., the Nissan Altima he was riding in was traveling eastbound about a mile south of Jasper when headlights appeared where they should not have been—coming straight at them in the same lanes.
State troopers said the Altima was struck head-on by a Dodge Ram 1500 pickup that was moving westbound in the eastbound lanes. The impact was catastrophic, killing everyone inside the Nissan at the scene. Reports identified the four victims as Johnson and three other Little Rock residents: Monica Daniele Jackson, Tamblyn J. Jackson, and Kheri Thomas Ayers. Family members later said the group had been headed to a family reunion in Orlando, a trip that ended abruptly on that stretch of Alabama highway.
The driver of the pickup survived the collision with injuries and was transported to Walker Baptist Medical Center in Jasper for treatment. Authorities identified him as Michael Tory Majors of Bessemer, Alabama. As investigators worked to piece together how the wrong-way drive happened, Majors’ case quickly shifted from crash investigation to criminal prosecution.
According to Alabama authorities as reported by news outlets, Majors was arrested on July 12, 2019, after being released from the hospital, and booked into the Walker County Jail. He was charged with four counts of manslaughter—one count tied to each death in the Altima. Troopers said the investigation into the crash continued after the arrest, focusing on the circumstances that led to the truck entering and traveling the wrong way on the interstate.
