Father kills son while peforming wheelie
#1
02-18-2010, 03:23 AM
Father kills son while peforming wheelie
First off i took this from the 600F4I section and it was put up by zmds18. i figured more people would read it here.
(Mods sorry if this isnt allowed. The whole taking someone elses post and putting it somewehre else.)
The story
This happened a couple years ago but I never heard about it (i live in the same town) until a couple months ago..... just read the story and im sure you will all be as struck as i was.....
MORAL TO THE STORY IS WATCH YOUR CHILDREN AND KEEP THEM AWAY FROM THE STUNT FIELD
PEORIA —
Just after learning his 4-year-old son was dead and just before he was taken into police custody, Michael Wells cried in his mother's lap.
"He said, 'Mom, I just want to go home to my son, but he's not going to be there,'" a sobbing Crystal Wells said Sunday evening of her 21-year-old son.
Michael Wells was performing a wheelie on his motorcycle in the parking lot of Hundman Lumber, 2601 W. Altorfer Drive, about 5:30 p.m. Saturday when he struck his son, Ashton, who was riding a bicycle nearby.
The East Peoria man, a forklift driver by trade, was arrested later Saturday evening for aggravated reckless driving and operating a motorcycle on one wheel, among other charges.
He said goodbye to his dead son while wearing handcuffs, Crystal Wells said.
"He looked at me and said, 'Mom, this was an accident. I would have traded places with him and taken my own life before I let my son be hurt,'" she recalled.
Michael Wells, a recreational motorcyclist, and friends occasionally got together with friends to perform stunts on their bikes, Crystal Wells said. They were given permission months ago to practice their tricks in the parking lot of the lumber yard near the Allen Road Wal-Mart Supercenter, she said.
Ashton, who looked up to his dad, always wanted to come along, but Michael Wells hadn't allowed it before Saturday. The boy's mother, Holly Blanch, and several other spectators tagged along to watch Saturday's practice. The energetic 4-year-old was given a bit of free rein on his bike.
According to Crystal Wells, her grandson was riding his bike at the opposite end of the lumber yard parking lot while his dad performed his stunts. Excited to finally be free of training wheels and even more excited about being with his dad, the boy darted toward his father before Blanch could catch him - and before Michael Wells had a chance to react.
His first instinct, Crystal Wells said, was to rush his injured son to the nearest medical help he could find - Methodist MedPointe on North
Knoxville Avenue, 2 1/2 miles away. When they arrived, Ashton Wells had a pulse and was breathing but was immediately transported by ambulance to OSF Saint Francis Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 6:20 p.m.
Police went to the hospital and escorted Michael Wells back to the scene of the accident for questioning. He was arrested at the scene shortly thereafter and was driven back to the hospital in handcuffs to view his son's body.
The two were inseparable, Crystal Wells said. Six months ago, Michael Wells had "Ashton" tattooed on his wrist, which he nervously rubbed at the hospital while waiting to hear his son's condition. A protective father, Michael Wells wouldn't let his son ride his bike outside the yard.
"He was a grieving father who didn't have time to comprehend what happened," Crystal Wells said while dabbing her eyes with a nearly empty roll of toilet paper and smiling at a sea of pictures spread across the kitchen table in her Peoria home. "My son needs to be with his family. He is a grieving father, not a criminal."
Michael Wells will make his first appearance before a judge today. An autopsy on the boy is also scheduled for today.
(Mods sorry if this isnt allowed. The whole taking someone elses post and putting it somewehre else.)
The story
This happened a couple years ago but I never heard about it (i live in the same town) until a couple months ago..... just read the story and im sure you will all be as struck as i was.....
MORAL TO THE STORY IS WATCH YOUR CHILDREN AND KEEP THEM AWAY FROM THE STUNT FIELD
PEORIA —
Just after learning his 4-year-old son was dead and just before he was taken into police custody, Michael Wells cried in his mother's lap.
"He said, 'Mom, I just want to go home to my son, but he's not going to be there,'" a sobbing Crystal Wells said Sunday evening of her 21-year-old son.
Michael Wells was performing a wheelie on his motorcycle in the parking lot of Hundman Lumber, 2601 W. Altorfer Drive, about 5:30 p.m. Saturday when he struck his son, Ashton, who was riding a bicycle nearby.
The East Peoria man, a forklift driver by trade, was arrested later Saturday evening for aggravated reckless driving and operating a motorcycle on one wheel, among other charges.
He said goodbye to his dead son while wearing handcuffs, Crystal Wells said.
"He looked at me and said, 'Mom, this was an accident. I would have traded places with him and taken my own life before I let my son be hurt,'" she recalled.
Michael Wells, a recreational motorcyclist, and friends occasionally got together with friends to perform stunts on their bikes, Crystal Wells said. They were given permission months ago to practice their tricks in the parking lot of the lumber yard near the Allen Road Wal-Mart Supercenter, she said.
Ashton, who looked up to his dad, always wanted to come along, but Michael Wells hadn't allowed it before Saturday. The boy's mother, Holly Blanch, and several other spectators tagged along to watch Saturday's practice. The energetic 4-year-old was given a bit of free rein on his bike.
According to Crystal Wells, her grandson was riding his bike at the opposite end of the lumber yard parking lot while his dad performed his stunts. Excited to finally be free of training wheels and even more excited about being with his dad, the boy darted toward his father before Blanch could catch him - and before Michael Wells had a chance to react.
His first instinct, Crystal Wells said, was to rush his injured son to the nearest medical help he could find - Methodist MedPointe on North
Knoxville Avenue, 2 1/2 miles away. When they arrived, Ashton Wells had a pulse and was breathing but was immediately transported by ambulance to OSF Saint Francis Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 6:20 p.m.
Police went to the hospital and escorted Michael Wells back to the scene of the accident for questioning. He was arrested at the scene shortly thereafter and was driven back to the hospital in handcuffs to view his son's body.
The two were inseparable, Crystal Wells said. Six months ago, Michael Wells had "Ashton" tattooed on his wrist, which he nervously rubbed at the hospital while waiting to hear his son's condition. A protective father, Michael Wells wouldn't let his son ride his bike outside the yard.
"He was a grieving father who didn't have time to comprehend what happened," Crystal Wells said while dabbing her eyes with a nearly empty roll of toilet paper and smiling at a sea of pictures spread across the kitchen table in her Peoria home. "My son needs to be with his family. He is a grieving father, not a criminal."
Michael Wells will make his first appearance before a judge today. An autopsy on the boy is also scheduled for today.
#2
02-18-2010, 05:05 AM
I think this should be allowed here, it's a stark reminder of what crazyness on bikes can do to others and those we love....
That is just so absolutely tragic ... if this story serves nothing more than for everyone who goes stunting or doing crazy things with bikes to think hard about what they are doing and where they are ... it doesn't matter what the authorities do to him, it doesn't matter what you guys say about him or how you condemn him, it is a fact that he will never find peace again and that is a far worse punishment than any of us can imagine ..to lose your child is one thing, to lose your child through being wreckless on your own part is beyond comprehension ... I know if it were me I don't think I could ever get up in the morning again.
In this case it does just appear to be a tragic accident ... the boy got away from his mother and I imagine the last thing the dad expected was to find his son in his path ...
Everyone just take a bunch of care out there, even just riding normally......life is precious.
Jules
That is just so absolutely tragic ... if this story serves nothing more than for everyone who goes stunting or doing crazy things with bikes to think hard about what they are doing and where they are ... it doesn't matter what the authorities do to him, it doesn't matter what you guys say about him or how you condemn him, it is a fact that he will never find peace again and that is a far worse punishment than any of us can imagine ..to lose your child is one thing, to lose your child through being wreckless on your own part is beyond comprehension ... I know if it were me I don't think I could ever get up in the morning again.
In this case it does just appear to be a tragic accident ... the boy got away from his mother and I imagine the last thing the dad expected was to find his son in his path ...
Everyone just take a bunch of care out there, even just riding normally......life is precious.
Jules
Last edited by Juliet; 02-18-2010 at 05:13 AM.
#3
02-18-2010, 09:58 AM
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#4
02-18-2010, 11:19 AM
..i had tears in my eyes while reading this. my oldest son is four and i could not even imagine the life of that man after this event. story reminds me of a fellow co worker whos daughter ran out behind his truck while he was backing out the drive. she survived after many weeks in the hospital. thank god.
#7
02-18-2010, 02:01 PM
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#9
02-18-2010, 03:27 PM
#10
02-18-2010, 04:10 PM
Super Moderator and Official Welcome Crew Yeti
as a parent, there truly is nothing worse than having something happen to your child. and to feel responsible for it is a pain i can't even imagine.
...
and if you ever wonder how some bad ideas ever got started in the first place:
it's a story like this that prompts a special interest to butter up a politician who determines that the best solution for everyone to just outlaw motorcycles.
...
and if you ever wonder how some bad ideas ever got started in the first place:
it's a story like this that prompts a special interest to butter up a politician who determines that the best solution for everyone to just outlaw motorcycles.