Flint Man Dragged To Death By Pickup

FLINT, Mich. -- The search for suspects is under way in Flint after police said a man was robbed and then killed by being dragged behind a truck.The incident happened at the intersection of Gilispie Avenue and Buick Street around 4 a.m. Sunday.

Gary Dotson, 48, has been identified as the victim. Police said Dotson had multiple chest and head injuries.The vehicle is described as a gray newer model pickup truck with an extended cab, with rear tire fenders that stuck out.

Police said the truck was driven by a black male with a black female passenger.Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call Flint Police at 810-237-6929.

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If the victim had been black this would have been labeled a hate crime.

4-year-old killed in 'tragic accident'

KOKOMO, Ind. (WISH) - A Kokomo family grieves for a four-year-old girl after her grandfather accidentally ran over her.

The tragic incident happened Sunday morning in the parking lot of Centro Cristiano Adonai Church.

Police said Jesus Martinez didn't see his four-year-old granddaughter Beatriz Arreola standing in front of his minivan when he put the van in drive and rolled over her.

"The four-year-old had apparently traveled to the church with an uncle, but once church services were over she apparently went to her grandfather's minivan and stood at the front bumper," said Sheriff Marshall Talbert of the Howard County Sheriff's Department.

Church members of the congregation witnessed the accident. They rushed to help get the van off Beatriz by using a jack, but by that time it was too late.

In May of 2005, 24-Hour News 8 reporter Gene Rodriguez did a story on the dangers of blind-spots in larger vehicles such as, SUVs, trucks and vans.

Since that story aired, more than 700 American children died in non-traffic accidents on private property. So far this year there has been 116 deaths.

Janette Fennell with Kids and Cars has lobbied for legislation that protects children.

"We know that as many as two children every week in the United States are being backed over and killed," said Fennell.

In this most recent case, it was a front over accident. And according to Kids in Cars between 2002 and 2006 there were 128 fatal front over accidents in the U.S.

"Often times when you step into a vehicle you are looking inside the vehicle and then as you take your seat look out drive forward he probably never saw her there," said Sheriff Talbert.

Martinez tested negative for drugs and alcohol. The sheriff said this was just a tragic accident and Martinez won't be charged.

Meantime, recent federal legislation aims to prevent these accidents by creating rear visibility standards for vehicles, requiring the federal government to collect data on non-traffic accidents like these and provide educational programs about these dangers.

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I don't understand why people don't look before they get into their vehicles. I look for animals for crying out loud. Be aware of your surroundings.

Report: Children Left Mom's Body To Rot

MIDDLEFIELD, Conn. -- A brother and sister who left their mother's corpse to rot in her ramshackle house may not be charged with a crime for keeping her death a secret for more than seven years.

While John and Diane Simmeck acknowledged they allowed Ann Simmeck's body to decompose and did nothing about it, the state law that makes failing to report a death a crime does not require private citizens to contact officials when a relative is discovered dead.

The statute only applies when a body has been officially reported dead.

"I'm not aware of any crime that would clearly apply to their conduct," Todd Fernow, a professor at the University of Connecticut School of Law.

"There really isn't anything that requires a regular citizen to report a death or dispose of a dead body in accordance with a procedure," Fernow told The Hartford Courant, in an article published Sunday.

A 100-page state police case file, recently released to the newspaper, details how the brother and sister made biannual trips to their mother's Middlefield home, stepping over her mummified remains on the floor.

Police believe Ann Simmeck died in late 1999 or early 2000. They discovered her body in June 2007 after an estranged son, Michael Simmeck, had grown worried about his mother's well-being. She was probably 72 when she died of natural causes.

Her remains were so badly decomposed that she was identified by comparing her DNA to Michael Simmeck's DNA.

After spending six months investigating the elderly woman's death, investigators applied for warrants charging John and Diane Simmeck with failing to report a death and improper disposal of a body. But Superior Court Judge Patrick J. Clifford refused to sign them because he did not feel their actions "fit within the parameters of the crimes," according to state police reports.

"It's an odd set of facts," Fernow said. "I don't see the legislature doing a lot to create a statute for something like this because people don't expect this to happen every day."

John Simmeck Jr., in interviews with state police, said he didn't report his mother's death because "he was scared and in trouble with the law in both New Hampshire and Connecticut," according to police documents.

He is facing an identity theft charge in connection with his alleged use of his father's identity in 2003 to set up a cell phone account.

To protect the secret of his mother's death, Simmeck continued for years to pay property taxes on the house and the electric bill because the freezer was stuffed with food. Water was cut off to the house.

His sister, Diane Simmeck, could not provide police with a reasonable explanation for her actions.

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I JUST DON'T KNOW WHAT TO SAY HERE. THIS IS DISGUSTING AND SHOULD BE A CRIME.

Toddler Dies After Being Left In Truck

GREEN OAK TOWNSHIP, Mich. -- Police in Livingston County's Green Oak Township say an 18-month-old girl is dead after being left unattended inside a pickup truck for more than two hours.

Chief Bob Brookins says police and fire crews responding to a call about 4:30 p.m. Wednesday found the girl unconscious and overheated.

National Weather Service data show the temperature in nearby Howell was 88 degrees at the time.

Brookins said that it doesn't appear any windows were cracked while the girl was in the truck in the driveway on Riviera Court.

Investigators said the girl's father was the last person to drive the pickup truck and her mother was at work in the morning. Investigators said at some point, both parents realized the child was in the car.

It is unclear what events led to the child being inside the vehicle.

Family members are cooperating with investigators.

Authorites have not released the names of the parents, who are both in their late 20s, but they did say the victim's name was Alyssa. The couple also shares a 3-year-old child.

One woman's daughter who lives in the neighborhood told her about it and she felt compelled to bring the family a card.

"She called me later on and told me the circumstances. My heart just goes out to them," said Sharon Burmeister.

An autopsy is to be conducted soon.

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MY HEART GOES OUT TO THE FAMILY. MY QUESTION IS HOW DO YOU NOT KNOW WHERE YOUR CHILD IS AT ALL TIMES? WHEN YOU GO TO THE GROCER, DON'T YOU MAKE SURE YOU HAVED ALL YOUR FOOD? WHY IS IT SO HARD TO DO THE SAME WITH YOUR KID?