Topeka family remembers loved one after Christmas Day fatal crash

TOPEKA (KSNT) - Five months after a Topeka man was killed in a high-speed crash on Christmas Day, police have finally arrested the man they say was responsible.

They say time heals all wounds. But for one family, the loss of their loved one, Brett Joynt, that wound is still fresh.

"He was the best," Brett's mom, Tania Rogers said. "I mean, he was the best son ever. He was a good boy he had a lot of friends. Nobody has anything bad to say about him still. He was just an all-around good person."

His family says he was riding in a car with his friend Justice Cox behind the wheel down 37th Street at what police say were extreme speeds. That's when they crashed into a utility poll. Justice and another occupant were injured. Brett died at the scene.

"I mean they were going 100 miles per hour down 37th Street," Rogers said. "Don't drive like that."

Now, five months later, police arrested Cox for first-degree murder and multiple traffic charges.
Still grieving from the loss of her son, Rogers said the arrest doesn't matter to her because nothing will bring Brett back.

"It doesn't matter what he gets charged with -- Brett's not gonna come back," Rogers said. "And it's unfair because Brett was a very good person, and he impacted a lot of people's lives, and he should have been here to impact his nephew's life."

"Ultimately, we lost both of them on Christmas day," Brett's sister, Cassandra Joynt said. "My brothers life was over, and you know we lost Justice. Justice was my brother's best friend and he was like a brother to me."

While Brett might be gone, Cassandra knows Brett would want them to power through and be happy.

"My brother would ultimately want us all to continue to live our lives to the fullest," Cassandra said. "He was always a person who was down to go do anything, just he wanted to have fun."

Cassandra says she doesn't agree with the first-degree murder charge because she knows what happened wasn't intentional. Brett's family says he was an adrenaline junkie and if there was one thing that he loved it was skateboarding. The family is working on getting a bench at the skate park with his name on it to honor his memory.