December 22, 2024

Investigation ongoing in fatal crash

By Mike Mendenhall

The pickup truck damaged in the accident sat at Barney’s Wrecker and Crane Auto at 1301 E 36th Street South in Newton on Thursday afternoon. As he took pictures of the mangled vehicle, Jasper County Sheriff’s Lt. Brad Shutts showed how the truck’s door frame and cab supports were cut on the passenger side and the windshield broken by responders to retrieve David and Dakota Stattelman from the wreck. (Mike Mendenhall)

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The Jasper County Sheriff’s Department is continuing their investigation Friday in the deaths of Newton Senior High School students and brothers David and Dakota Stattelman, ages 16 and 14 respectively, of Newton.

David and Dakota were killed early Thursday morning after the 1990 Chevrolet pick-up, driven by 18-year-old Joseph Dean Stoner of Newton, rolled into the south ditch and collided with a utility pole in the 4600 block of South 36th Avenue West at 4:43 a.m. Authorities say the pole collapsed onto the vehicle. Stoner had only minor injuries. Department authorities said that Stoner escaped from the vehicle and made it to a nearby residence to report the crash. He was taken to Skiff Medical Center by Newton ambulance.

The two brothers were pronounced dead at the scene. Jasper County Sheriff’s Deputy Lt. Brad Shutts said deputies had to break the windshield and cut door frames to recover the brothers from the depressed pickup cab. Mercy Hospital Air One from Des Moines was dispatched, but was not used in the incident.

No charges have been filed against Stoner in the case, and Shutts told Newton Daily News staff Thursday night that he doesn’t expect a decision from the county attorney for several weeks. But Jasper County Sheriff Mike Balmer said that speed was likely a factor in the crash.

Faculty and students of NHS remembered David and Dakota this morning with a moment of silence. Several students met with High School Principal Bill Peters privately today to begin plans on a way to honor the brothers.

“Both boys were well thought of,” High School principal Bill Peters wrote via e-mail on Thursday afternoon. “Our prayers go out to the family and friends. This is an absolute tragedy.”

NHS Junior and Hy-Vee employee Dakota DeRaad said she used to “make small talk,” with Dakota’s and David’s mother in her check out line at Hy-Vee.

“I feel really bad about the whole situation,” DeRaad said. “I wasn’t quite sure who it was until we saw pictures, and all I could think about was their mom and how bad she must have felt.”

Another classmate, Chelsea Anderson said that David was interested in ultimate fighting and hoped to fight professionally.

“They were really good people,” she said of both brothers. “And just really good friends.”

Mike Mendenhall can be contacted at 792-3121 ext. 422 or via e-mail at mmendenhall@newtondailynews.com.