Fishers resident Trey Williams, 18, will face charges in adult court following a May 30 ruling by a Hamilton County magistrate.
Magistrate Valorie Hahn listened to three hours of testimony and arguments the previous day about whether Williams, who was 17 at the time of a fatal March 1 vehicle crash, should be waived into adult court. Witnesses included crash scene investigators, a juvenile probation officer and a psychologist hired by the defendant’s family.
After he is formally charged in adult court, the defendant, who has been in juvenile custody since early May, will face charges of felony reckless homicide, misdemeanor reckless driving and carrying false government identification. He drove one of the vehicles involved in a crash on Florida Road that killed 18-year-old Mason Alexander, a former Hamilton Southeastern High School student-athlete.
Alexander’s family and friends packed the courtroom at the Hamilton County Courthouse to watch the May 29 hearing. Williams, wearing an orange-and-white-striped juvenile detention jumpsuit, was joined at the defense table by his parents and attorneys.
Alexander graduated from HSE early and was a freshman at the University of Pittsburgh, where he was a cornerback on the football team. He was home for a visit and was the passenger in the defendant’s white 2016 BMW.
According to the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office, the BMW was traveling south on Florida Road from 113th Street. At the same time, a silver 2015 Toyota RAV-4 was headed north on Florida Road near Geist Park. The BMW tried to pass a southbound car in front of it by entering the oncoming lane just before a hill crest. The RAV-4 and the BMW both swerved to avoid a collision, and the BMW ended up hitting a tree and catching fire.
Lt. Kevin Crask testified in court that he completed the crash investigation report and found the BMW was going a minimum of 56 mph in a posted 35 mph zone, both the defendant and Alexander were wearing seatbelts, and the airbags did deploy. He said a witness reported that just prior to the accident, the BMW passed him in a roundabout at a high rate of speed with a maneuver that reminded the witness of the Indy 500.
Crask said a blood-draw toxicology screening wasn’t completed because Williams’ parents were traveling and couldn’t be present. A urine sample did not show any recent alcohol consumption, but did show use of cannabis. Cannabis remains in a person’s system for a while and when it was consumed could not be determined.
Crask said there was no evidence to show that the RAV-4 collided with the BMW or that the RAV-4 contributed to the crash. He had obtained another vehicle’s dash-cam video footage of the accident that was played in court, prompting tears from members of Alexander’s family.
Crask testified that he searched the BMW and found three drivers licenses — two Indiana licenses and one Ohio license — with Williams’ name and photo but with a birth year of 2002.
Capt. Scott Pass of the sheriff’s office testified that several witnesses told him that a group of seven friends had gathered at one boy’s house that night and got into four separate vehicles to drive to another boy’s home. They planned to follow the defendant but were separated because of the BMW’s excessive speed.
Pass also testified that he received warrants for Williams’ Snapchat and Instagram accounts and retrieved videos that were played in court. One video from about a month before the accident showed Williams smoking a vape pen while in the driver’s seat of a car and talking about buying drugs and beer.
During questioning by the defense attorney, Pass testified that witnesses told him that Williams did not drink alcohol or use drugs just prior to the accident.
A juvenile probation officer testified about a preliminary inquiry her office conducted. She said that Williams’ parents told her office that their son hadn’t driven since the accident and that they did not suspect him of ever drinking alcohol or using drugs.
The defense called psychologist, Dr. Sean Samuels to the stand. He testified that he had examined Williams and his parents, and he believed that Williams was a low risk for recidivism — committing another crime — and would benefit from therapy.
During questioning by the prosecution, Samuels said Williams’ parents told him that the defendant drank beer with his father and that they knew he used cannabis.
After witness testimony, the prosecution argued that Williams would have more accountability through the adult court system, where if convicted he would receive a higher level of monitoring during probation than the juvenile system.
The defense argued that the juvenile system is more appropriate because Williams has not yet matured psychologically or emotionally.
All crimes mentioned in this release are alleged and all suspects are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty in court.