Melton was driving a 2019 Dodge Charger around 2:50 p.m. Oct. 14, 2020, east on Old Dayton Road when he lost control near Diamond Mill Road. The car then went off the left side of the roadway, crashed into a guardrail, a utility pole and a mailbox before overturning twice into a cornfield, according to a traffic crash report from the Perry Twp. Police Department.
Kaden M. Melton of West Alexandria, an eighth-grader at Twin Valley South Middle School, was not wearing a seat belt and was ejected out the back window before the car rolled onto him, killing him, Montgomery County Prosecutor Mat Heck Jr. stated previously.
The car was traveling 103 mph in a 45 mph zone at the time of the crash, the prosecutor’s office said.
Credit: Montgomery County Jail
Credit: Montgomery County Jail
“The tragic and senseless death of this 13-year-old boy could have so easily been prevented. In addition to driving well over double the posted speed limit, this defendant didn’t even check to make sure his son was wearing his seat belt. There is simply no excuse for such reckless and criminal behavior,” Heck stated.
Melton, who called 911 after the crash, and a 29-year-old Eaton woman riding in the front passenger seat, suffered minor injuries.
“I hit a pole coming over the hill,” Melton said to the emergency dispatcher. “There was a car in the other lane and I swerved and missed it. I hit a pole and guardrail and landed in the cornfield.”
Melton was booked Thursday morning into the Montgomery County Jail. A status hearing in his case is scheduled for Aug. 30 and he is next due in court Sept. 7, records show.
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