Father charged with child neglect in fatal crash
Waverly resident Roy Tranter is handcuffed following his arraignment in Wood County Magistrate Court on Tuesday night on a felony charge of child neglect resulting in death. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
A 5-year-old boy was killed in a single-vehicle crash Tuesday afternoon along West Virginia 21 in Mineral Wells next to Oakwood Drive. (Photo by Candice Black)
Two male occupants were transported to WVU Medicine Camden Clark Medical Center. Wood County Sheriff Steve Stephens said the driver of the vehicle lost control, rolled off the road and then back on to the road. (Photo by Candice Black)
Waverly resident Roy Tranter is handcuffed following his arraignment in Wood County Magistrate Court on Tuesday night on a felony charge of child neglect resulting in death. (Photo by Evan Bevins)
A 5-year-old boy was killed in a single-vehicle crash Tuesday afternoon along West Virginia 21 in Mineral Wells next to Oakwood Drive. (Photo by Candice Black)
Two male occupants were transported to WVU Medicine Camden Clark Medical Center. Wood County Sheriff Steve Stephens said the driver of the vehicle lost control, rolled off the road and then back on to the road. (Photo by Candice Black)
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From staff reports
MINERAL WELLS -- A father was charged with child neglect resulting in death following a Tuesday afternoon traffic accident that killed his 5-year-old son.
Roy Thomas Tranter, 45, of 210 Deerwalk Highway, Waverly, was arraigned Tuesday night in front of Wood County Magistrate Robin Waters, who set his bond at $100,000 on the felony charge.
According to the criminal complaint filed in magistrate court, Tranter was traveling south in the 3700 block of Southern Highway (West Virginia 21) when his 1994 Jeep went off the road, rolling onto its passenger side. His son was unrestrained in the back seat and ejected from the vehicle, the complaint said.
A release from Wood County Sheriff Steve Stephens said 911 callers indicated passersby were attempting to perform CPR on the boy, identified in the complaint only by his initials. Deputies arriving on the scene found the boy unresponsive, and EMS personnel and the coroner pronounced him dead at the scene, the release said.
The complaint did not indicate what caused the vehicle to go off the road. The investigation was ongoing Tuesday, the release said.
Southbound traffic was shut down after the crash. Most motorists were able to turn around but some larger trucks and trailers had trouble, causing traffic congestion.