SHELBY COUNTY, Ind. — A mother is grieving the death of her 6-year-old son after a deadly crash Saturday night in Shelby County.
According to INDOT, around 8:30 p.m. on Nov. 9, police were called to the intersection of State Road 44 and County Road 600 East on a report of a three-vehicle crash.
According to the Shelby County Sheriff Department, a 2005 Ford Explorer, with two adult occupants and a 6-year-old, was headed east on State Road 44 and had stopped to turn north onto County Road 600 East.
A 2011 Chevrolet Tahoe, with one adult occupant, was headed eastbound and didn't slow or go around the Explorer, so police said it crashed into the back of the Explorer.
Officers said the Explorer was "spun" by the impact, causing it to cross into the westbound lanes of State Road 44. The Explorer was then hit by a Chrysler Town and Country, which had one adult occupant and four minors.
Police said multiple injuries were reported, with multiple people taken to local hospitals, where the 6-year-old was pronounced dead.
Kyndra Phelps said her 6-year-old son, James Hodges, was in the Explorer with his grandmother when their car was hit. Medics rushed James to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
"By the time I got to the hospital, his heart was pretty much gone. I put my hand on his chest, and he was gone instantly," said Kyndra, who's now remembering her son's contagious energy and loving smile. "(He) put a smile on everyone's face. He's made an impact on a lot of people's lives."
James was a first-grade student in the Northwestern Consolidated School District of Shelby County.