CARROLL COUNTY, Ga. — In an exclusive interview, a former state trooper says he prays every day for the family of two teenage girls killed in a crash.
Wednesday, a grand jury declined to indict Anthony "AJ" Scott on any criminal charges, including two vehicular homicide charges, for the crash involving his cruiser.
“I do feel sorry every day. I'm sorry I was on that road,” Scott told Channel 2’s Liz Artz on Thursday.
Scott had been a Georgia State trooper for nearly four years last September when he hit a car carrying four teens. Kylie Lindsey, 17, and Isabella Chinchilla, 16, both died. Two other teens were seriously injured.
"I pray every day this is just a dream, but it isn't -- and I’m going to have to live with it,” Scott said.
Dash cam video released Thursday shows the moments before impact and after, when Scott radioed in for help.
“Send fire and EMS,” Scott can be heard saying into his radio.
He then ran to the car driven by Dillon Wall and pulled him out.
“It's smoking. Get him out of here, help me get him out of here,” Scott yells in the video.
In Scott’s case the grand jury considered four factors; the trooper’s speed, the fact that the teenage driver failed to yield, the physical condition of the interstate, including the grade of the hill and length of grass blocking views, and the poor design of the intersection.
“They went in there, sat down and looked at the facts and took everything they've heard from the media set that aside,” Scott said.
Scott says he wants to be an advocate for making the intersection safer.
“(I want to work towards) getting that intersection changed, especially the grass. There’s no reason for the Georgia Department of Transportation to try to save money by letting the grass grow that tall,” Scott said.
Scott was fired days after the crash. He's since won a seat on the Buchannon City Council. He told Artz he doesn't know if he'll ever go back into law enforcement.
“Only time will tell. If God calls me back to it, I would, but as of right now I don’t see myself going back,” he said.
Scott said the time has not been right to visit Chinchilla or Lindsey’s families personally.
“There's no words to describe how sorry I feel. I hope they find some kind of comfort in the future. If I can ever be of service any of them I’m here and I'll do whatever they need,” Scott said.
The district attorney told Artz Thursday that the grand jury was thoughtful, intelligent and asked pointed questions. He said he does not think he will present the case to another grand jury in the future.
WSBTV
