3-month-old girl killed in crash that closed I-85 North for hours, Durham police say

A 3-month-old girl died Tuesday when she was ejected from a car during a crash on Interstate 85 in Durham near East Club Boulevard, Durham police said Wednesday.

The crash occurred in the left-most northbound lane around 4:15 p.m. when the driver of a 2012 Volkswagen, identified by police as 39-year-old Shanelle Johnson of Raleigh, tried to merge into the far left lane from the far right lane, the Durham Police Department said in a news release.

Johnson tried to pass a 2004 BMW M3 but collided with the BMW’s left rear corner, police said, which caused her car to overturn several times before coming to a rest in an upright position in the left-most lane.

Two girls, the 3-month-old and a 4-year-old, were ejected from the car when it overturned, according to police. Neither child was secured in the car, police said. Police did not say whether the children and Johnson were related.

Police said the 3-month-old girl was pronounced dead at the scene. Police had confirmed that the crash was fatal Tuesday evening but did not say how many people were in the car or identify the person killed as a child.

The 4-year-old girl was taken to a hospital for treatment of critical injuries, police said Wednesday. Johnson was also taken to the hospital with injuries that police said did not appear to be life-threatening.

Johnson was cited by police for misdemeanor death by vehicle, careless and reckless driving, and failure to secure a passenger under the age of 16, according to the release.

An investigation into the crash is continuing, police said.

The crash, which was reported by the North Carolina Department of Transportation just before 4:30 p.m., shut down all northbound lanes for more than three hours Tuesday evening. The highway reopened shortly before 8 p.m., police said.