Updated: 1:11 PM EDT May 13, 2021
WLWT Digital Staff
WLWT Digital Staff
The Butler County Coroner has now identified a 6-year-old boy struck and killed by a car in Hamilton, Ohio.Nolen Scott Jones died of a head injury following a crash along a busy Hamilton road Tuesday evening, the coroner said.Jones was one of two children struck around 6:45 p.m. on Pleasant Avenue near Williams Avenue.Another child, 11-year-old Logan Watson, was taken to the hospital with what police are calling "incapacitating injuries."Jones was a kindergartener at Linden Elementary School within Hamilton City Schools. The school district released a statement which reads in part, "We know you may have heard some things about this tragedy and want you to know that we are here to help you. If you feel that you need to talk to someone about how you are feeling, please let me or any other adult know, and we will put you in touch with someone who can help."Hamilton police said the children were not in a crosswalk when they were struck by the car.The driver, Elizabeth Mehl, 30, was arrested and charged with OVI, drug abuse and endangering children. The child endangering charge stems from her having two children in the car with her, police said. According to court documents, Mehl's "pupils were constricted" and she had "blood shot eyes."Court documents state that she told officers "she wouldn't pass a urine test because she had Percocet in her system." Another woman, Hortencia Reesa Garcia, has also been arrested and charged with tampering with evidence. Police said she is a friend of Mehl's and pulled up right after the crash. They said Garcia walked over to Mehl's car and tried to hide cash and items with suspected drug residue on them.Witnesses told WLWT they wish there was more they could have done to help, describing the moments that followed after the young boy was hit.Two men who spoke with WLWT Tuesday night were trembling and had tears in their eyes as they described what happened. They said they found the little boy lying near a crosswalk. The two men were inside a tattoo shop feet away from the area the boy was hit when people ran inside screaming for them to call 911."He says, 'little kid's hit!' And I've got kids, like, it freaked me out. I come running out straight to 'em, I just can't. I wanted to do some CPR. I'm certified in CPR. I know how to fix somebody choking. There was nothing you could do about it. I was just too late, man. And this guy's shoes were 40 to 50 feet away, man," said Timothy Strittholt, who was a witness at the scene."The little boy wasn't in good shape. We ran up on him and I will give credit to Hamilton PD and the Hamilton Fire Department. They were here within seconds," said Jason Francis, who was also a witness.The witnesses also mentioned how fast cars have been traveling on Pleasant Avenue on Tuesday, day and night. They said cars travel 60 mph on the roadway on a regular basis. We don't know how fast the driver was going when the crash happened.Police said the cause and any charges related to the accident are still under investigation.The boy's family said a vigil will be held Saturday night at 7:30 p.m., to bring awareness to impaired driving, lack of crosswalks and speeding in the area and to thank the firefighters who tried to save Nolen.