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Third Teen Dies After High School Track Team Mowed Down By Grieving Oklahoma Dad
High School track athlete Kolby Crum died on Saturday after he and six other teens were allegedly hit by a drunk Oklahoma driver earlier this month.
The Oklahoma dad who drunkenly mowed down seven high school track athletes, killing two of them earlier this month, has been hit with a cluster of new charges following the death of a third teen on Saturday.
Max Townsend, 57, is now facing three counts of manslaughter, along with an array of other charges related to the fatal collision in Moore, Oklahoma on Feb. 3, following the death of 18-year-old Kolby Crum, according to KFOR-TV.
Townsend had previously been charged with driving under the influence causing great bodily injury and several counts of leaving the scene of an accident after he allegedly drove his truck into the gaggle of long-distance runners, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by Oxygen.com.
Rachel Freeman and sophomore Yuridia Martinez were also killed in the collision.
On Feb. 3, Townsend’s red Ford truck allegedly jumped the curb and struck the seven teens while they were training. Authorities said it didn’t appear the man had attempted to brake prior to colliding with the group of student athletes.
“The collision resulted in the pedestrians sustaining severe trauma to their heads, torsos, and legs,” the arrest affidavit stated.
Law enforcement said Townsend was traveling 79 miles per hour in a 25-mile per hour zone, the Associated Press reported.
“Bodies were all over Main Street,” Police Sgt. Jeremy Lewis said at the time.
Townsend allegedly fled the scene without stopping, “in an apparent effort to avoid detection,” authorities added. When he was finally arrested, Townsend told police he had drank a beer before the collision. He failed a sobriety test and was booked by Moore police officers.
The 57-year-old has previously pleaded guilty to at least two DUI charges in other counties, as well as drug possession and leaving the scene of an accident, according to KWTV-DT.
Prior to the lethal collision, Townsend’s son was killed in a separate car crash, KFOR-TV reported.
Crum had been in a coma for a number of days prior to dying, according to KOCO-TV.
The 18-year-old honor student, whose ultimate passion was long-distance running, also adored comics, Star Wars, swimming, and stand up comedy, according to his obituary. After graduating, Crum had planned to attend Redlands Community College in El Reno where he had received a scholarship.
“It is with immeasurable grief and sorrow that we share that Kolby left his earthly home to finish his race in heaven this morning,” Prayers for Kolby, a Facebook page dedicated to Crum, posted on Feb. 15. “He impacted the lives around him in positive ways every day. He is so loved by so many and will be deeply missed.”
Crum’s funeral was held at a Baptist church in Moore on Thursday.
“Kolby is not gone — Kolby’s with us,” coach Stefan Seifried said of the teen during his funeral service this week. “Kolby will always stay with us and the things that he has left behind: his passion to run, his heart, his hard work, his work ethic, all those things stay with us. And they’ll be passed on.”
The cross country high school coach, who said he’s known Crum since seventh grade, described the teen as a selfless, hard-working athlete, who was often “the first one down to practice and the last one to leave.”
“He was just an amazing kid,” Seifried added. “There’s not enough words.”
Townsend’s next court appearance is scheduled for March 24, according to the Cleveland County Clerk’s office.
