A man in Lufkin, Texas, is facing a charge of criminally negligent homicide after he allegedly asked a 10-year-old girl to move his pickup on Sunday, leading to a fatal crash.
While behind the wheel, the girl crashed the Nissan Titan into a porch, and a 6-year-old boy was killed, according to local ABC affiliate KTRE TV.
Clinton Earl Johnson Jr., 31, was arrested Tuesday in connection with the crash, which took place while he and his family were grilling.
Johnson’s 6-year-old stepson was looking at a cellphone on the porch while a 10-year-old girl rode around the driveway on a tricycle, according to an Angelina County Sheriff’s Office document obtained by KTRE.
At one point, the girl reportedly griped that Johnson’s truck was in her way, so Johnson allegedly told her to “scoot it up,” according to an arrest document obtained by CBS 19.
HuffPost reached out to the Angelina County Sheriff’s Office for more information.
Johnson later told investigators that the girl had driven on backroads previously, according to KYTX TV.
However, the boy’s mother told the sheriff’s department that when her daughter was behind the wheel, she “got confused and got on the gas,” and the truck slammed into the porch, KTRE reported.
Deputies from the Angelina County Sheriff’s Office found several boards and poles on the ground when they arrived, as well as Johnson’s stepson on the ground in front of the truck.
The boy was taken to a local hospital and pronounced dead.
Deputies noted they smelled alcohol on Johnson and the boy’s mother, and they allegedly admitted to having three or four drinks apiece.
On Tuesday, Johnson was taken to the Angelina County Jail and booked on a charge of state jail felony criminally negligent homicide. He was released after posting a $3,000 bond.
It’s unclear whether he has obtained an attorney or when his next scheduled court date is.
