FATHER ABANDONS HIS FAMILY IN CRASH AND GETS ARRESTED

Fort Worth Star-Telegram

 

‘I gotta get out of here.’ Dad abandons family in crash, gets arrested, Texas cops say

By Kate Linderman

Updated March 28, 2025 3:30 PM

 

Texas police say a father ran away from the scene of a 100-mph crash, abandoning his injured wife and kids. Houston Police Department.

 

A father ran from the scene of a “major” crash as his wife and four young children were still in an SUV that flipped into a bayou, Texas authorities and KTRK reported.

 

The 40-year-old dad was arrested the day after the March 25 Houston crash and charged with abandoning a child in imminent danger, according to court and jail records.

 

The man’s attorney information was not listed. McClatchy News is not naming the suspect to protect the identity of his children.

 

New details released in a criminal complaint include witness accounts of the scene of the crash where multiple people said they watched the man crawl out of the car and leave his family.

 

One man heard a “large boom” when the crash occurred. After the dad got out of the car, the witness told police he heard the man say “get my kids” and “I gotta get out of here,” the complaint said.

 

Another witness heard the man say “I’m running” and “I’m wanted” as he ran off, according to the criminal complaint.

 

The man was out on bond for DWI with a child passenger and unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon, the complaint said. He was charged in February and previously convicted of a felony in 2016, court documents said.

 

Police said the same four children involved in the March 25 crash were also in the vehicle during the father’s Feb. 13 DWI incident.

 

The vehicle was driving 100 miles per hour when it struck a truck turning into a gas station, then flipped into a ditch, police and KPRC reported.

 

The woman, who told police she was the driver, went unconscious when the vehicle crashed, according to the complaint. When she woke up, she heard witnesses telling her to get her children out of the vehicle, police said.

 

She was bleeding from her face and showed signs of confusion, police said.

 

Her 3-year-old son suffered a collapsed lung and the 8-year-old needed surgery to repair abdominal injuries, according to the complaint. A 4-year-old and 7-month-old were also in the vehicle during the crash.

 

The father is scheduled to appear in court April 3.