HENDRICKS COUNTY — The family of a 3-year-old boy, who was critically injured in a deadly police chase in Plainfield, has told WRTV they will take him off life support on Tuesday.
According to a probable cause affidavit, on February 5, Avon Police Officer Kevin Roach was investigating a stolen vehicle, which had been detected by license plate readers in the area. Based on intelligence indicating the Civic would be traveling on US 40, Officer Roach began monitoring the route.
Once he confirmed visually that the gray Honda Civic was indeed the stolen vehicle, Officer Roach activated his lights and sirens in an attempt to pull the driver, S'doni Pettis, over at the intersection of US 40 and Raceway Rd. However, Pettis accelerated away.
Continuing west on US 40, Pettis reached speeds of approximately 90 mph as he approached the intersection with Ronald Reagan Parkway. Pettis drove into oncoming traffic, resulting in a collision with a red Ford Explorer. The force of the impact caused the Explorer to catch fire and roll into the southbound lanes of the parkway.
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The driver of the Explorer sustained serious injuries. Tragically, the 3-year-old boy, Ares, and his two-month-old sister, Iris, was also in the vehicle. Iris was pronounced dead at the scene.
Ares’ family told WRTV they have decided to take him off life support.
“His doctors have decided that he would not have any quality of life, so we have all decided it is in his best interest to be at peace and no longer suffering,” Ares’ mother said.
After the crash, Pettis was transported to the hospital and subsequently released. A search warrant was executed for a blood draw to assess his condition at the time of the incident.
During questioning, Pettis admitted he understood why the officer was pursuing him, acknowledging that he was operating a stolen vehicle and was aware of his probation status. Pettis confessed that he stole the vehicle from the north side on February 2. He also admitted to smoking marijuana an hour before he fled from police. Pettis allegedly told police he attempted to brake before the collision, though data from the vehicle's onboard system did not support this claim.
Pettis is charged with two counts of resisting law enforcement with a vehicle causing death, three counts of causing catastrophic injury while operating a vehicle with a Schedule 1 or 2 substance, and auto theft.
