SergntMac
04-12-2006, 09:15 AM
But, not a good story. It's sad how stupid some can be about street racing.
Drag racing takes lives of 4
Victims were watching street contest in Gary
By Josh Noel
Tribune staff reporter
Published April 12, 2006
Jaylen Ellis, 6, had just climbed off his all-terrain vehicle when word circulated that a street race was about to begin.
Still wearing his helmet, Jaylen crouched among dozens of spectators along busy 5th Avenue in west Gary to watch the cars zoom down the long, straight road that locals say has been used for such contests for decades.
As the vehicles roared toward the crowd about 5:40 p.m. Monday, an 84-year-old man turned his car in front of the lead racer, sending it rocketing into the sea of onlookers, police said. Chaos and dust were everywhere.
When it settled, Jaylen and three other spectators were dead in a field where adults often come to socialize and children to play on warm afternoons in the Brunswick neighborhood.
"He was a daredevil and would do anything," said Kaneka Kidd, 27, Jaylen's mother. "He was my heart."
On her cellular phone Tuesday, Kidd showed a photo she said was her son riding the vehicle about 20 minutes before his death. She said she was standing in the field when the accident happened.
"All you saw was the dirt and glass and dust and bodies," she said before beginning to sob.
Jaylen, known as "Coconut," was a kindergartner imbued with a streak of daring that attracted him to cars, trucks and the gas-powered ATV he shared with his four siblings, family members said.
At the same time, Jaylen showed an unusual sensitivity for such a young boy, family said, always able to detect when a relative was upset, and wanting to know why.
"If he saw you crying, he came up to you and hugged you," said his aunt, Kanesha Kidd, 23.
Also killed were Wil Muldrew Jr., 36, and Benjamin Harper III, 31, who were also in the field watching the race. A fourth man, Conrad Richardson, 28, died Tuesday after being brought to St. Catherine Hospital in East Chicago. All lived in Gary.
Mourners for the adults trickled to the crash scene Tuesday. Some, like a relative of Harper, could barely stand while sobbing over what she said was a puddle of his blood. A longtime family friend, Rick Sierra, said Harper has several children.
JaVay Taylor, 30, arrived with flowers for Richardson, a mechanic and father of five, who she said was her best friend. Though a big man many people found intimidating, Richardson was "just a teddy bear," Taylor said. He once accompanied her daughter to Grandparents Day at school because no one else was able to go, she said.
"She didn't want to be by herself, and he knew that so he went," Taylor said. "That's the kind of person he was."
Gary officials called it the city's worst traffic accident in years, and particularly regrettable because police have targeted that stretch of 5th for heightened traffic enforcement.
"This street is of major concern," Deputy Police Chief Alpha Stewart said at the scene of the crash Tuesday, where broken glass, car parts and a decal of a flaming Chevrolet logo remained.
Christopher Castillo, 20, the driver whose car careered into the field; a passenger police did not identify; and Fred Brown, the man whose vehicle turned in front of their car, were all taken to hospitals in critical condition. Castillo and Brown had driver's licenses in good standing, police said, who added that charges would not be discussed until the investigation is finished.
They also declined to estimate the speed of the racing cars.
Driving a burgundy Chevrolet Caprice, Castillo was far ahead of the person he was racing, police said. They are looking for the driver of the other car, a black Ford Mustang GT, who left after the accident.
Though covered by spotty grass and flecked with trash and broken bottles, the field at 5th and Colfax Street is a prime meeting place because of its size, said Pat Crenshaw, 34, a mechanic who lives next door. Adults can sip beer and barbecue while children have room to run.
"We've been doing it for years," he said. "Just set up some chairs and have some fun."
But when the car spun into the field--taking down a telephone pole--confusion reigned, he said.
"Everybody was running, but some people weren't running fast enough," Crenshaw said. "Or they were running in the wrong direction."
Also leaving flowers at the crash site was Mary Mendez, 55, a life-long neighborhood resident who didn't know the victims.
She mourned a loss she said was echoing through Brunswick, which she said has been marred by street racing for too long.
"This shouldn't be happening in the neighborhood," she said. "Look at the size of this field. That little boy should have been safe playing out here."
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jbnoel@tribune.com
Drag racing takes lives of 4
Victims were watching street contest in Gary
By Josh Noel
Tribune staff reporter
Published April 12, 2006
Jaylen Ellis, 6, had just climbed off his all-terrain vehicle when word circulated that a street race was about to begin.
Still wearing his helmet, Jaylen crouched among dozens of spectators along busy 5th Avenue in west Gary to watch the cars zoom down the long, straight road that locals say has been used for such contests for decades.
As the vehicles roared toward the crowd about 5:40 p.m. Monday, an 84-year-old man turned his car in front of the lead racer, sending it rocketing into the sea of onlookers, police said. Chaos and dust were everywhere.
When it settled, Jaylen and three other spectators were dead in a field where adults often come to socialize and children to play on warm afternoons in the Brunswick neighborhood.
"He was a daredevil and would do anything," said Kaneka Kidd, 27, Jaylen's mother. "He was my heart."
On her cellular phone Tuesday, Kidd showed a photo she said was her son riding the vehicle about 20 minutes before his death. She said she was standing in the field when the accident happened.
"All you saw was the dirt and glass and dust and bodies," she said before beginning to sob.
Jaylen, known as "Coconut," was a kindergartner imbued with a streak of daring that attracted him to cars, trucks and the gas-powered ATV he shared with his four siblings, family members said.
At the same time, Jaylen showed an unusual sensitivity for such a young boy, family said, always able to detect when a relative was upset, and wanting to know why.
"If he saw you crying, he came up to you and hugged you," said his aunt, Kanesha Kidd, 23.
Also killed were Wil Muldrew Jr., 36, and Benjamin Harper III, 31, who were also in the field watching the race. A fourth man, Conrad Richardson, 28, died Tuesday after being brought to St. Catherine Hospital in East Chicago. All lived in Gary.
Mourners for the adults trickled to the crash scene Tuesday. Some, like a relative of Harper, could barely stand while sobbing over what she said was a puddle of his blood. A longtime family friend, Rick Sierra, said Harper has several children.
JaVay Taylor, 30, arrived with flowers for Richardson, a mechanic and father of five, who she said was her best friend. Though a big man many people found intimidating, Richardson was "just a teddy bear," Taylor said. He once accompanied her daughter to Grandparents Day at school because no one else was able to go, she said.
"She didn't want to be by herself, and he knew that so he went," Taylor said. "That's the kind of person he was."
Gary officials called it the city's worst traffic accident in years, and particularly regrettable because police have targeted that stretch of 5th for heightened traffic enforcement.
"This street is of major concern," Deputy Police Chief Alpha Stewart said at the scene of the crash Tuesday, where broken glass, car parts and a decal of a flaming Chevrolet logo remained.
Christopher Castillo, 20, the driver whose car careered into the field; a passenger police did not identify; and Fred Brown, the man whose vehicle turned in front of their car, were all taken to hospitals in critical condition. Castillo and Brown had driver's licenses in good standing, police said, who added that charges would not be discussed until the investigation is finished.
They also declined to estimate the speed of the racing cars.
Driving a burgundy Chevrolet Caprice, Castillo was far ahead of the person he was racing, police said. They are looking for the driver of the other car, a black Ford Mustang GT, who left after the accident.
Though covered by spotty grass and flecked with trash and broken bottles, the field at 5th and Colfax Street is a prime meeting place because of its size, said Pat Crenshaw, 34, a mechanic who lives next door. Adults can sip beer and barbecue while children have room to run.
"We've been doing it for years," he said. "Just set up some chairs and have some fun."
But when the car spun into the field--taking down a telephone pole--confusion reigned, he said.
"Everybody was running, but some people weren't running fast enough," Crenshaw said. "Or they were running in the wrong direction."
Also leaving flowers at the crash site was Mary Mendez, 55, a life-long neighborhood resident who didn't know the victims.
She mourned a loss she said was echoing through Brunswick, which she said has been marred by street racing for too long.
"This shouldn't be happening in the neighborhood," she said. "Look at the size of this field. That little boy should have been safe playing out here."
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jbnoel@tribune.com