son skitches behind car while dad drives...son dies...father charged with murder...

[skategeezer]

unreal... watch the video...

Father Arrested In Son's Skateboarding Death

Reported by: Stacey Morgan \ WCIA 3 News


Friday, Apr 18, 2008 @06:05pm CST


A Decatur man is behind bars tonight, accused of killing his son.

38-year old Timothy Melvin was arrested Thursday night, two weeks after his son died doing a skateboarding stunt.

A police officer's sworn statement was introduced in Macon County Court today. It says Timothy Melvin was driving the car that hit and killed his son in Fairview Park.

According to the statement, 12-year-old Zachary Melvin was riding his skateboard while holding on to the moving car. His dad was going about 15 miles per hour. But his son fell off the skateboard and was run over. Prosecutors say while it may have been an accident, it's still reckless behavior.

"Obviously it's a tragic situation," says State's Attorney Jack Ahola. "But you can't have people doing this kind of thing either. And if you've been out to the scene, it's not the best road for being on a skateboard, even without a car pulling you. Because of the curves and ditches there."

Melvin made his first appearance in court today. Bond was set at $20,000. He'll likely be charged next week with reckless homicide and endangering the life of a child. If found guilty, he could get 10 years in prison.

[Karv]

I can't imagine the pain that father must be going through.

[skategeezer]

does the punishment fit the crime
I hope he has a good lawyer

dumb father...but it's manslaughter, not murder

[TylertheSquint]

he kinda looks like a murderer..=)

[GravityRider15]

holy ####. I feel bad for the father, even though it was a dumb move.

[SteveC]

does the punishment fit the crime
I hope he has a good lawyer

dumb father...but it's manslaughter, not murder

X2.

10charrrrrr

[HerBDerb]

He shouldn't have to deal with that crap.
The guy lost his son, due in part to his idiotic actions.
That's punishment enough.

[skeeterdechico]

That is so ridiculous. That dad is already going through enough. Maybe charge him with some misdemeanor. I hate the law system.

[Trygve]

X2.

10charrrrrr

x310charrr

[Steve757]

that is so stupid!
the father lost his son...bad enough right?
no, he was the one who drove his son to death and even killed him.
can you imagine how hard you would beat yourself up?
i think thats bad enough folks.

[CL]

Wow, how is that murder? Its not, by definition, that is Manslaughter. The murder charges will get dropped. If they dont get dropped, expect this to blow up in the media something fierce.

I think the father was stupid in letting a 12yr old skitch on his own car. Yeah its true, hes suffering enough after losing his child, but that doesnt excuse the fact that he still broke a law. Someones emotional feelings after breaking a law have no bearing on the fact that they still commited a crime. Thats like robbing a bank, getting shot by the police, and then saying "oh, well he's suffering enough after getting shot, lets let him off the hook for robbery!" Yeah, it dont work like that.

Manslaughter: Killing of a person without the element of intention necessary to constitute murder.
Murder: The unlawful and intentional killing of a human being by another.

This is a sad story nonetheless, no matter how you look at it. Another skater is dead, and theres more negative publicity on a sport thats already looked at pretty negatively.

[Foblander]

i feel sorry for the father and what he is going through, but he is dumb as to let his 12 year old boy skitch behind his car. Even when I have a kid, I'm not going to allow him to do it because it's just dangerous. A tragic accident indeed..

[Steve Ignorant]

I've skitched up to about 25 miles an hour. Anytime a friend drives through the neighborhood, I grab onto the drivers side window and they take off. Looks like it might not be a good idea

[Justin K]

3rd death stort today, Here some advice for you all, WEAR YOUR ####### HELMET OR YOU WILL HIT YOUR ####### HEAD AND ####### DIE!!!!

Thank You.

[blumrs26]

I really feel for the dad. I agree that his pain is enough punishment, unfortunately, in the eyes of the law, more must be done.

This kind of story really shows me how stupid I've been in the past. I've skitched going over 50, no helmet or pads. I really feel lucky looking back at that. Stupid stupid stupid

[Bruce22]

I skitch but only if I know the pavement. Plus it's on a go kart never going over 15.

I feel so bad for the dad. Bad enough for the guy

[CasterTown]

I feel really bad for all these kids who are getting killed by skitching but its just common sense! If you're holding on to a car you are taking a risk. People are going to choose to take that risk just like we take a comparable risk when skating on mountain roads where there could be traffic. But if you're going to hold onto a car WHY THE #### WOULD YOU HOLD ON SOMEWHERE WHERE YOU'RE IN FRONT OF THE WHEELS?!? For god's sake...I know its mean, but thats bordering fundamental natural selection! One, you know what happens when you go too fast on a skateboard, and two, you know what happens when you go under a moving car. The first is bound to happen to everyone and the second is VERY likely if you go down while holding on to the middle of the car rather than the back fender or a tailgate.

[2wheelfreedom]

If the idiot is stupid enough to let his son do this then he should be prosecuted. I hope the idiot realizes what he did to the people that loved that young boy

[Foblander]

^ nice first post

[mc99david]

3rd death stort today, Here some advice for you all, WEAR YOUR ####### HELMET OR YOU WILL HIT YOUR ####### HEAD AND ####### DIE!!!!

Thank You.

first of all this sucks and if i were the dad i would kill myself, there is no way that i could live with the fact that i killed my son, and i would feel that i deserve to be in hell for eternity...

ok, now to address DR1 here... yes a helmet is very smart, but of the three longboard deaths recently, one was run over by a car and the other run over by a bus.. your little protec will not save your life in these cases... the only thing that would save you is to not be under the car or bus...

in these tragic stories people need more common sense than helmets.. and comon sense with a helmet is even better.

this being said, ive skitched over 40, but you gotta do it right, know what you are doing and stay away from wheels