The father of a 6-year-old Washington County boy pleaded guilty Wednesday to a felony charge in connection with a utility vehicle rollover crash that left another young boy seriously injured.
On Jan. 6, 2024, Samuel Kelley’s son drove two visiting boys in the Kelley family’s Polaris Ranger 500 utility vehicle in the 9000 block of Lansing Avenue North near Grant. As the child was driving, the vehicle rolled onto its right side and pinned one of the young boys underneath. The boy was found unconscious and seriously injured, according to authorities.
“I let my son operate an ATV with two other kids with him, that he shouldn’t have been operating due to his age,” Kelley said during the hearing.
Child drivers
Around 8:30 a.m. Jan. 6, a Washington County Sheriff’s Office deputy found Kelley, 56, kneeling on the ground next to the UTV. The upper cage of the UTV was pinning down the boy’s neck, and the 1,065-pound UTV’s body pinned down his legs. The boy’s “face was turning blue, likely due to lack of oxygen,” according to the criminal complaint.
The boy was taken to the hospital with a bruised lung, broken leg and was put into a medically induced coma. He was discharged Jan. 15, 2024, according to the complaint.
Both parents of the young driver, Samuel and Katie Kelley, were charged last December in Washington County District Court with one felony count of child endangerment.
On Wednesday, Kelley said that though his wife was home at the time, he was the sole adult responsible for the care of all three 6-year-old boys and that no other adults were responsible for the incident.
What happened?
According to the complaint, the child who was driving said he and his friends decided to take the UTV out for a ride and went to get their helmets. On Wednesday, Kelley admitted to the court that, though he was aware of the age restrictions of operating the large vehicle, he allowed the boys to do so. He stated that he helped the boys get ready to ride, even buckling their helmets beforehand.
Kelley’s son told police he was “driving the UTV along a trail near the neighbor’s house when the UTV started spinning because of the fresh snow,” according to the complaint. “(He) stated that he let go and the UTV rolled onto its passenger side, pinning (the) victim underneath.”
According to the boy, the victim was not wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash. Neither adult present in the home supervised the boys while they operated the UTV, according to the complaint.
Kelley pleaded guilty to one felony count of child endangerment. In court on Wednesday, he verbally took responsibility for the incident. Judge Patrick Flanagan ordered that Kelley undergo a pre-sentence investigation ahead of his official sentencing on Feb. 24.
At sentencing, Kelley could face up to three years of probation. He would also have to complete an ATV safety course and complete 100 hours of community service.
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