Grief counselors will be available in Iowa Park schools Monday following the death of a former student in a traffic crash, according to a Facebook post from Iowa Park Consolidated ISD.
Sylis Helmick, 13, was killed while riding his bicycle at 500 West Highway Street at 4:22 a.m. Saturday, according to Iowa Park Police.
An Olney man has been arrested and charged in connection with Helmick’s death, court and jail records show.
Iowa Park CISD said in a Facebook post, “Support will be available on campus Monday, as counselors will be here to help students and staff process and navigate this loss.”
Andrew Nicholas Tellez was charged with intoxication manslaughter with a vehicle and was being held Monday in the Wichita County Jail on a $100,000 bond, according to jail and court online records.
Intoxication manslaughter is a second-degree felony in Texas and can carry punishment of 2 to 20 years in prison if convicted. Anyone charged with a crime is presumed innocent unless convicted beyond reasonable doubt in a court of law.
According to allegations in a probable cause affidavit, officers sent to the scene found Tellez standing next to a Chevrolet pickup in a ditch and a body in the road nearby.
Tellez told police he had been driving from Maximus, a strip club in Wichita Falls, and the last thing he remembered was crashing his truck.
The investigating officer said he smelled alcohol on Tellez’s breath, according to allegations in court documents. Tellez said to police, “Did I kill them?” and “I just ruined my life.”
Iowa Park Police Chief Steve Davis said the investigation into the incident is ongoing.
This article originally appeared on Wichita Falls Times Record News: Olney driver charged in bicyclist’s death in Iowa Park
Reporting by Lynn Walker, Wichita Falls Times Record News / Wichita Falls Times Record News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
