Driver Pleads Guilty in Fatality

A 23-year-old Linden, Va., man admitted yesterday that he was drunk and traveling 70 mph when his truck slammed into a van stopped at a traffic light in the Gainesville area, killing 8-year-old Joshua Adams as he slept in the back seat.

Rodney A. Martin pleaded guilty in Prince William County Circuit Court to aggravated involuntary manslaughter in the May 11 crash. His blood-alcohol level was 0.14, nearly twice the legal limit, and he had cocaine in his system, according to testimony.

"I consider it murder," said Joshua's mother, Darlene Adams, 52, who wears a necklace bearing the boy's smiling face. "We don't want to end up with a bitter heart, but this walk of grief is a hard walk."

She was sitting in the front passenger seat when the crash occurred, on Mother's Day. Joshua's half-brother, MacKenzie Green, was driving. They were on their way from their home in Warrenton to the District to see Green perform in two gospel concerts.

The family's Honda Odyssey was stopped on Lee Highway, waiting to turn left onto Somerset Crossing Drive about 6 a.m. when the truck came barreling toward them. Joshua and his mother were taken to Inova Fairfax Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead and she was treated and released, police said. Green was treated for his injuries at the scene.

Martin was convicted of DUI in May 2006 in Fairfax County, according to court records, and faces up to 20 years in prison when he is sentenced July 30.

Joshua's family gathered outside the courthouse after yesterday's hearing. His mother called the guilty plea "bittersweet," saying she was glad the case didn't go to trial but would have preferred a stiffer charge.

Joshua was born in Woodstock, Va., and grew up in Warrenton, his mother said. The second-grader, who attended Fresta Valley Christian School in Marshall, was a Redskins fan, played baseball and basketball, and was called "Little Shaq" because of his skills on the court and his above-average height of 4-foot-10.

Martin's attorney, Carroll A. Weimer Jr., said his client was remorseful.

"This is simply a tragedy all around, and my client entered a plea of guilty and is sorry for what happened," Weimer said.

Staff researcher Meg Smith contributed to this report.