David W. Overlin David W. Overlin - accused of striking and killing a toddler with his car on June 13, 2013 and leaving the scene of the accident. He had a prior offense of possessing between 30 and 500 grams of cannabis on Dec. 4, 2012. Read More June 18, 2013 12:45 am • By NICOLE HARBOUR - H&R Staff Writer UPDATED: Man, 24, arrested in hit-and-run death of toddler DECATUR — Police say they have found and arrested the driver responsible for the hit-and-run accident that claimed the life of a 17-month-old … Read more DECATUR — Bond was set at more than $200,000 Monday for David W. Overlin, the 24-year-old man accused of striking and killing a toddler with his car early Thursday morning and leaving the scene of the accident. During a hearing Monday, Macon County Circuit Court Judge Thomas E. Griffith found probable cause for Overlin to be arrested for the offense of leaving the scene of a fatal accident, as well as possessing between 30 and 500 grams of cannabis stemming from a Dec. 4, 2012, search of his home. Bond was set at $200,000 in the hit-and-run case and $10,000 in the 2012 case. Overlin was arrested Sunday after police tracked him to a residence in the 2100 block of East Cantrell Street, ending a search that began just after midnight Thursday, according to an arrest affidavit by Decatur police officer Jon Quehl. At about 12:01 a.m. Thursday, police responded to the 2500 block of East Garfield Avenue regarding a hit-and-run accident. They found the body of 20-month-old Zyonne A. Cooper in the right-hand, westbound lane in front of a residence. Macon County Coroner Michael Day pronounced the toddler dead at the scene about 3:20 a.m. Thursday. He said the child suffered from “massive, destructive head trauma.” Investigation and witnesses revealed that before police arrived, a white, 1995 to 2000 Ford Explorer had been westbound in the right-hand lane when it struck the boy in the street. “Witnesses described the impact of the accident as sounding like a gunshot,” Quehl wrote, noting that they also told officers that the front windows of the suspect’s vehicle were down when the incident occurred, allowing them to get a look at the driver. After receiving information on a white 2000 Ford Explorer in the area, members of the Decatur Police Department Fatal Investigation Team and the Macon County Sheriff’s Office contacted Overlin, one of the registered owners of the vehicle, on Sunday. According to the police affidavit, Overlin told officers that as he was driving west in the 2500 block of East Garfield, he felt “what he described as a bump in the road.” “Overlin stated that he continued to drive west and looked in his rearview mirrors,” Quehl wrote, adding that when Overlin did so, he saw trash cans along the side of the road and something in the street. “Overlin stated that he thought he ran over some trash … and did not realize he struck a little boy.” The 24-year-old reported that he did not realize he’d hit the toddler until about 1:30 a.m. Thursday, when a friend texted him that police were looking for a white Ford Explorer that had struck and killed a boy. Overlin, who was arrested at 6:30 a.m. Sunday, told police he did not have insurance on the vehicle. Officers also discovered the vehicle’s license plates were suspended due to insurance violation. After giving a written statement on the 2013 incident, Overlin also was arrested on charges stemming from a December 2012 case in which police found nearly 500 grams of cannabis and a digital scale in his home. During an interview, he told police that the cannabis belonged to him and said he sold cannabis to people in the Decatur area, Det. Jason Hesse wrote in an arrest affidavit. He is scheduled to be arraigned on both charges June 24.
Posted on: Fri, 21 Jun 2013 20:56:03 +0000
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