DES MOINES, Iowa — The prosecution and the defense held closing arguments in the trial of Keith Jones Wednesday.
Jones is charged with six criminal counts for his role in the deadly December 2022 crash.
The prosecution argued that the witnesses and video evidence show that Jones was driving recklessly leading up to the deadly crash.
“They all described the behaviors the same," said Jaki Livingston, assistant Polk County attorney "Both vehicles racing, weaving in and out of traffic, cutting lanes, driving recklessly, dangerously."
However, defense attorney Van Plumb argued that witness testimonies were inconsistent and the video evidence wasn’t accurate.
“Do you see it swerve? Never once did you see it cross the center line. never once did you see it go to the right side. it drives straight down the road,” Plumb said.
While both sides argued the inability to determine if Jones was intoxicated or not, both sides also disputed each other’s witnesses, all coming down to why Jones is accused in this crime.
“What the state wants you to believe is if a person is driving down the freeway, and the idiot behind them decides to speed up to keep them from coming in, if that causes a guy to have a little road rage and you don’t immediately get off the freeway, and he gets in an accident, you’re responsible. That’s what the state is telling you about this case,” Plumb said.
Ultimately, the state argued that Jones could have avoided the crash.
“And while the defendant claims, 'I didn’t want to do this,' he didn’t take any step to end it,” Livingston said.
The jury deliberated all of Wednesday afternoon and will continue deliberating Thursday morning until they reach a verdict.