CHANDLER, AZ (AZFamily) – A family is still reeling from the heartache caused by a driver who caused a fatal crash on Interstate 10 while distracted by a social media app.

For the Arizona Department of Public Safety, this is the first case of its kind. Seconds before the accident that killed five people on I-10 near Chandler early last year, 38-year-old driver Danny Tiner was watching TikTok videos while driving too fast.

Sarah Standifird lost her 28-year-old son Andrew that day. She says that while the news of the verdict gives her some closure, the pain Danny Tiner has caused her family is indescribable.

“I don’t think I’ll ever get over it. I’m still numb at the moment,” Standifird said.

On the morning of January 12, 2023, five people lost their lives after Tiner, driving a semi-truck on the highway, crashed into two cars and pushed them into another semi-truck and two other cars, according to DPS. The crushed cars burst into flames.

“I had to identify him from his dental records,” Standifird said. “I didn’t get a body, just ashes. I guess that’s why I was angry about everything.”

According to authorities, seconds before the accident, Tiner was watching TikTok videos on his cellphone and driving at 68 miles per hour through a construction zone where the speed limit is 55 miles per hour.

But Tiner told the police a different story. He said he received a message on his work tablet and when he looked up, he couldn’t stop in time. The accident closed the highway for eleven hours that day.

“My family is in turmoil,” Standifird said.

Standifird says Andrew loved music and was an entrepreneur who was excited about his future. He leaves behind three young children.

“He was a very generous person,” she said. “He would have given the shirt off his back.”

Tiner was sentenced to more than 22 years in prison. The families of the victims were in the courtroom.

“He didn’t even look at us,” Standifird said. “He showed no remorse.”

Standifird says Tiner’s verdict brings her some peace, but is just another reminder that nothing will bring her son back.

“You have to live with grief your whole life and you just have to learn to live with it,” she said. “At the end of the day, we took one person off the streets and it could have happened again. He could have killed a lot more people.”

After the accident, our team discovered that the transportation company had been involved in 26 accidents in Arizona over the past three years. The company had also committed dozens of violations in the state, with drivers being charged with speeding, not wearing a seatbelt, talking on the phone while driving, and more.

“As a driver, you have a duty to pay attention to the road. Choosing to access social media while driving and risking the lives of others is reckless,” said Maricopa County District Attorney Rachel Mitchell. “Five families are experiencing the pain of losing a loved one. While the legal system can never ease that pain, it can hold those responsible accountable. We have achieved that goal.”

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