A tractor-trailer driver is facing multiple charges, including eight counts of vehicular homicide, after a Monday crash on Interstate 85 in Jackson County, Georgia.
The crash resulted in nine deaths — one unborn child and eight multi-generational members of one family.
Kane Aaron Hammock, 33, of Gainesville, Georgia, was arrested Monday following the crash that involved six vehicles and clogged the northbound lanes of I-85, according to WAGA-TV.
Hammock faces eight counts of homicide by vehicle in the second degree, feticide by vehicle, distracted driving, and following too closely, all of which are misdemeanors. He also faces a charge of operating a vehicle without a current plate.
Officials said that all eight people that died were inside of a Dodge minivan that was rear-ended by a tanker semi-truck that was following too close. https://t.co/186EvwfCZ5
— KHOU 11 News Houston (@KHOU) October 15, 2025
Hammock was driving a tractor-trailer that slammed into a van ahead of him, when set off a chain reaction of vehicles hitting one another, according to the Georgia State Patrol.
The van caught fire after it was hit, killing all of those inside.
The van contained a grandmother, her pregnant daughter, the daughter’s partner, and five children, according to Atlanta News First.
Kenia Ramirez and Darwin Ventura were killed, along with their child Kayle. Kenia was pregnant at the time of her death.
Fiery pile-up leaves at least eight people dead and injured CATS running everywhere on I-85 in Georgia https://t.co/2FE17lTb78
— Daily Mail (@DailyMail) October 14, 2025
Sonia Maribel Ramirez, Kenia’s mother, was killed, as were her children Justin, Andy, Natali, and Evan. The children were between the ages of 2 and 16, the family said.
“I can’t even describe the violence of the impact. It was so unexpected,” Mike Rullan, who was in the crash, said, according to the New York Post.
“It was definitely carnage. The way I saw it, it covered the entire interstate,” he said.
Furkids Animal Rescue and Shelter said on Facebook that a van taking 37 rescued cats to a shelter in Vermont was involved in the accident.
Truck driver charged in I-85 crash that killed Gwinnett family https://t.co/PCwKG8HQ8I pic.twitter.com/Vc1b5S8ZBz
— Gwinnett Daily Post (@GwinnettDaily) October 15, 2025
The driver was injured, the post said, and five cats are unaccounted for.
The truck Hammock was driving was hauling chicken feed, according to ABC.
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