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'We aren't going to stop': Family demands justice after man pleads not guilty in St. Louis crash that killed mom, daughter

This month, a grand jury indicted Monte Henderson and added a DWI charge involving alcohol. Henderson faces four additional felony charges.

ST. LOUIS — A driver charged with killing two women from Chicago pleaded not guilty on Friday morning.

A mother and daughter were killed in a crash outside a Drake concert in downtown St. Louis last month.

The driver, 22-year-old Monte Henderson, is also facing a new charge from that February night.

This month, a grand jury indicted him and added a DWI charge involving alcohol.

Henderson faces four additional felony charges, including involuntary manslaughter and armed criminal action. He is out on bond. Henderson was released 24 hours after he was charged. 

Henderson was in court with his family Friday morning. 

Also in the courtroom were the victim's family, who wore shirts in honor of their loved ones.

Laticha Bracero, 42, and her 21-year-old daughter Alyssa Cordova were in town for the Drake concert, which let out shortly before the women were struck while walking near Enterprise Center.

Family said the two were walking back to their hotel when the crash happened.

Officers said Henderson was running red lights and was traveling at speeds in excess of 70 mph when he sideswiped the front end of another car at North 18th and Olive streets. His Jeep rotated clockwise and hit Bracero and Cordova, who were walking in the crosswalk. The Jeep continued to move until it T-boned another vehicle.

Family member Nicole Rivera said, "We're not going to let them be forgotten. They won't continue to be two fatalities, they are Letty and Alyssa. They are our family, we love them and we aren't going to stop demanding justice."

Following the hearing, the victims' family stood outside the courthouse to speak to reporters.

Rivera shared, "We're so angry, how someone can be up there and plead not guilty knowing that he took them from us?"

Rivera talked about their anger involving Henderson's swift release.

"He gets to be at home and sleep in his bed, he eats at his table and he gets to hug his family... what do we got? We are just broken," Rivera added.

Rivera also addressed the viral video of the crash circulating social media. 

She said, "When I was forwarded the video I anticipated it was a hard image to see but I literally had no words. It was horrible. You can’t unsee it, I can’t unsee it."

Following the hearing, the family went to the crash site on 18th and Olive. 

It's the first time their family from Chicago visited the site, where the two spent their last moments together.

Credit: KSDK

Pictures and candles were placed near the intersection.

"They were important pieces of our family and now we don't get to see them but we always focus to remember them in a positive light," she added.

Now the family's motive is to make change.

"Almost a year to the date was the story with the other girl who lost her legs, clearly this is not something new. That should have been addressed and maybe they would still be here," Rivera added.

She is referencing a Tennessee teen Janae Edmondson. 

This month, a jury said 22-year-old Daniel Riley, the driver who critically injured Edmondson while she was visiting St. Louis in February 2023, should serve nearly 19 years in prison hours after he was found guilty on all but one misdemeanor assault charge for causing the crash. 

Credit: KSDK

While the victims' family holds each other, they're uplifted by prayer.

"We're just at the mercy of the courts to make sure that he gets what he deserves. The law is the law, we want him to have the harshest punishment that the law allows. We're not going to give up fighting for them," Rivera added.

5 On Your Side reached out to Henderson's attorney but haven't heard back yet.

The next hearing will be April 23.




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