A North Georgia man has died two months after he was seriously injured in a head-on collision with a suspected street racer fleeing from state troopers on a winding mountain road.
Jim Richardson, 65, of Colbert, died of suspected heart failure July 5 at the home of a friend, according to his family. He suffered multiple severe injuries in the April 27 crash, including crushed ribs, a broken leg, a broken hip and more, his cousin Paula Emde told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Richardson was intubated, placing him in a medically induced coma, for about two weeks after he was taken to the hospital, Emde said.
Despite the severity of Richardson’s injuries, Emde said his friends and family were hopeful he would make a full recovery. His head, hands and feet were relatively unharmed.
Instead, Richardson died suddenly at the home of a friend in his hometown of Columbus. He fell while using a walker during his prescribed physical therapy exercises and could not be revived, Emde said.
Richardson’s body was transferred to the GBI for an autopsy, a spokeswoman for the state agency confirmed.
The suspected street racer who crashed into Richardson’s Nissan Murano, 37-year-old Rhyan Coley Davis of Gainesville, died at the scene, the Georgia State Patrol said. The man he was suspected of racing, 23-year-old Qayyim Yah Yah Ali of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was arrested on multiple counts, including murder.
Ali was booked into the White County Jail, where he remains without bond.
Richardson was a true renaissance man, family and friends said in interviews with the AJC. He was a well-known metalsmith who taught his craft at two schools for the lapidary arts, as well as an accomplished musician who played the fiddle, mandolin, guitar and more. According to Emde, Richardson and his brother would regularly play Bluegrass music together at family gatherings.
Kristine Robertson, executive director of the William Holland School of Lapidary Arts in Young Harris, said Richardson was an incredibly talented craftsman who nonetheless identified himself first as a teacher.
“Jim was probably the most authentic person I’ve ever met,” Robertson said. “He loved teaching. Everybody wanted to take his class, and you could just talk to him about anything.”
Robertson described Richardson as “a big part of William Holland,” noting that he was on the school’s board of directors and taught there for about 20 years.
“At the hospital, when staff would come in and engage Jim in conversation, he would tell them he was a teacher, which I found fascinating that that became his identity,” Emde said. “Between the William Holland School and John C. Campbell Folk School in North Carolina, he taught a lot.”
It is not clear how Richardson’s death will affect the investigation into the crash. Emde said Richardson had a dashboard camera in his car and investigators were hoping to enter that footage into evidence, but they did not secure permission before Richardson died.
Authorities have not said if Ali will face additional charges.
Because Richardson’s body is still in the GBI’s custody, no funeral arrangements have been made.
“It’ll be a great celebration when the time comes,” Emde said. “We want to take a little time and do it right, have a big gathering with lots of music and lots of food, and we’ll share memories.”
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