LORAIN — The mother of 17-year-old fatal crash victim Cameron Friend is conflicted about the arrest of the driver.
“It’s sad,” Kelly Friend said several hours after police said 17-year-old driver Zachary Goodin was arrested and charged with aggravated vehicular homicide Thursday. “They were best friends, so it’s hard.”
Police Officer Kyle Gelenius, who investigated the crash, said Goodin was driving well over the posted 25 mph speed limit when he lost control and crashed on Kansas Avenue about 12:40 a.m. July 13. Goodin, of the 400 block of Idaho Avenue, was driving the Honda ULX belonging to his mother, Deborah Goodin, when he crashed.
Gelenius said the northbound Goodin accelerated as he approached the railroad tracks on Kansas Avenue and the Honda went airborne about 60 feet. Goodin lost control when the Honda landed.
He hit a curb, veered right off the road and struck a utility pole, according to Gelenius’ report. The Honda then traveled back onto the road. It veered left of center, striking a curb and running off the road and through the front yards of several homes.
The Honda then struck a parked, unoccupied Ford Explorer and caromed into the side of a house at 426 Kansas Ave. No one in the home was hurt. The Honda then spun and struck a tree in the front yard before stopping and catching fire.
Police extinguished the fire and removed Friend and Goodin from the Honda with help from several residents. Friend died after being hospitalized. Goodin was critically injured.
Cameron Friend died of injuries sustained in this crash, in a car driven by his friend Zachary Goodin. PHOTO COURTESY LORAIN POLICE
After the crash, nearby resident Paul Pelton was arrested and charged with vehicle trespass after being accused of entering the Honda to record the occupants on his phone. Pelton, who pleaded not guilty, said in a Facebook post that he posted the video online as a cautionary tale about the dangers of reckless driving.
In a related incident, Pelton was charged last month with bribery and intimidation of a witness. Pelton is accused of trying to persuade Goodin to tell police he had permission to enter the Honda in exchange for Pelton giving Goodin legal assistance.
Pelton is due in Lorain Municipal Court at 1 p.m. Tuesday. Deborah Goodin wouldn’t comment, but Friend said it was “terrible” of Pelton to video the crash aftermath.
Kelly Friend said her son had been planning to attend college after graduating from Lorain High School, but hadn’t decided on a major. She said he was often quiet around her, but liked to chat online with his friends.
Friend said her son and Zachary Goodin — released to his mother after being booked — had been friends since elementary school. They worked together at a Subway and were returning from a gym when they crashed.
Friend, who said Goodin’s family contacted her to give condolences after her son’s death, said the two were like brothers. Friend said she doesn’t condone Goodin’s driving, but said young people often speed.
Friend said if Goodin is convicted, she hopes he isn’t imprisoned. “We do stupid things that we regret,” she said.
Gelenius said he’s investigated several fatal crashes involving young people since becoming an officer in 2005. Gelenius said in a news release that he hopes Friend’s death will be a wake-up call to young drivers to slow down. “Sadly, Zachary Goodin is going to have to live with the regret of killing his best friend for the rest of his life,” he said.
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