On Tuesday, a San Mateo County jury awarded $33 million to twin girls who lost both of their parents in a high-speed street-racing crash in Redwood City nearly four years ago. The girls’ maternal aunt, Liza Spiridon, who adopted the now 11-year-old girls after the deadly crash, tells NBC Bay Ar ea they finally feel some measure of justice, but said justice is not only responsibility but also remorse, reform, and making sure the next family doesn’t go through what they’ve been and will continue to go through. The verdict followed a roughly three-week wrongful death trial over the crash that killed Greg Ammen, 44, and Grace Spiridon, 42, as the family was heading home to San Carlos with their then-7-year-old twin daughters. The jury awarded the girls $33 million in economic and non-economic damages and found both other drivers involved, Cesar Morales and Kyle Harrison, along with Morales’ parents, Arnold Morales and Susana Salto Alvarez, liable. Redwood City Aug 11 Jury awards $33 million to twin girls who lost parents in Redwood City crash Redwood City Jul 16 Man in deadly hit-and-run crash in Redwood City ID'd Redwood City Jan 17, 2025 Teen sentenced to house arrest in Redwood City crash that killed couple Jurors assigned 60% of the fault to Cesar Morales, 20% to Arnold Morales, 15% to Kyle Harrison and 5% to Susana Salto Alvarez. “When the truth prevails, it doesn’t just vindicate — it heals,” Spiridon said following the verdict. “It gives grief somewhere to rest, turns silence into evidence, and hands the people left behind something they can finally stand on: not closure, but clarity.” Greg worked as an audio engineer at Dolby and Grace served as Head of New Service Introduction at Google. Family members and colleagues described them during the civil trial as successful and dedicated parents whose lives centered around their daughters. “Their daughters were their world. There’s nothing they would not do for them…they were involved in their classrooms volunteering, going to every single soccer game,” Liza Spiridon told NBC Bay Area. “Grace teaching the girls how to bake, Greg showing the girls woodworking, his Boy Scout side growing up.” Prosecutors determined Cesar Morales, then 17, and Harrison, then 23, were engaged in an illegal street race moments before the crash. Morales’ vehicle struck the Ammen family’s car as it was turning left. Harrison slowed down but did not stop after witnessing the crash. During the civil trial, witnesses described pulling the girls from the mangled vehicle. Spiridon said the twins have undergone intensive trauma therapy following the deaths of their parents. “They did more so early on” Spiridon said when asked whether the girls talk about the crash or their parents. “Now it comes up occasionally or when there’s a song or something that reminds them of mommy and daddy.” During the civil trial Jurors heard evidence that Morales was driving approximately 105 to 110 mph before the collision. The defense tried arguing Grace Spiridon was partially responsible for the crash because she turned left in front of the speeding cars, but the jurors ultimately disagreed. The plaintiffs’ attorney Niall McCarthy rejected that argument during trial. “They’re trying [to] blame the victim and say she shouldn’t have turned left in front of a car moving at that speed,” McCarthy said. The case also focused heavily on how much responsibility Morales’ parents bear for allowing their teenage son to drive. The plaintiffs argued there were warning signs surrounding Morales’ driving behavior and that his parents failed to adequately supervise him or intervene. Jurors heard evidence that Morales had previously been cited for driving more than 100 mph and for using his cell phone while driving. His parents testified they did not know about those specific citations. The defense disputed allegations about Morales’ parents owning the vehicle he was driving the night of the accident and presented vehicle registration and financial records as part of its argument. Jurors agreed on this point with the defense. “Parents are ultimately responsible for their teenage children,” Spiridon told NBC Bay Area before the verdict. “And based on the evidence, it appears to me the parents were not responsible for their teenage son.” The family’s attorney said following the verdict that he hoped the decision would serve as a warning to other parents. “We are hopeful today’s verdict serves as a wakeup call to Bay Area parents,” McCarthy said. “You cannot ignore warning signs with your teenage children.” The civil verdict follows years of separate criminal and juvenile court proceedings Because Morales was 17 at the time, his case proceeded in juvenile court. Prosecutors sought to have him transferred to adult court, but a judge denied that request. In 2024 a juvenile court judge found true two felony vehicular manslaughter allegations and felony allegations of engaging in a speed race causing great bodily injury. Morales served more than two years in juvenile hall followed by 90 days of electronic home monitoring and one year probation. The outcome frustrated members of the Ammen and Spiridon’s family. “It feels like Grace and Greg’s lives didn’t matter, that their daughter’s lives didn’t matter,” Liza Spiridon said. Harrison was prosecuted separately as an adult. He pleaded no contest to two counts of felony vehicular manslaughter and one count of felony street racing resulting in death or great bodily injury. In February 2025, a judge sentenced Harrison to eight years in state prison. Spiridon said Harrison apologized to the family during his sentencing and appeared deeply remorseful. “He was very remorseful, so much so that he turned around, even shackled to the chair, was crying and profusely apologizing,” Spiridon recalled. “Which meant a lot to our family.” But Harrison never made it to state prison on March 15, 2025, weeks after his sentencing, Harrison was found unresponsive at the Maple Street Correctional Center in Redwood City. The San Mateo County Coroner’s Office later determined Harrison died from the toxic effects of methadone, amitriptyline and gabapentin and ruled his death and accidental overdose from prescription drugs. Harrison’s death has since become the subject of a separate federal lawsuit. His parents and his estate are suing San Mateo County and others over his death in custody. The lawsuit alleges jail and medical personnel were responsible for medication-related failures that contributed to Harrison’s death. Those allegations have not been proven, and the county defendants have challenged the lawsuit. The case is still pending. Morales and his parents are also pursuing separate litigation against Redwood City, San Mateo County and other government entities over the investigation and prosecution following the crash. Their lawsuit alleges, among other claims, that authorities improperly characterized the collision as street racing and violated Morales’ constitutional rights. The government defendants have disputed the claims. The case was removed to federal court earlier this year, where the defendants filed motions seeking dismissal. Arnold Morales told NBC Bay Area during the trial that he would be willing to provide his family’s perspective after the verdict. NBC Bay Area reached out to him again following the jury’s decision and is awaiting a response. ...read more read less