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Background: News footage from the November 2024 car crash that killed James Doniven Hodges (WXIN). Inset (left): Khristal Grant (Shelby County Jail). Inset (right): James Doniven Hodges (Freeman Family Funeral Homes and Crematory).
An Indiana woman who was responsible for a fatal, multi-vehicle car crash that killed a 6-year-old boy was high on methamphetamine and doing her makeup in the mirror at the time, police said.
According to court records, 43-year-old Khristal Grant was taken into custody on Saturday, months after she allegedly rear-ended a Ford Explorer that was carrying 6-year-old James Doniven Hodges and his grandparents on Nov. 9, 2024. The Explorer was sent into oncoming traffic after the impact, causing it to collide with another car. Several people were injured and taken to local hospitals. James, who was going to celebrate his seventh birthday later that month, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Grant was charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicated, causing death.
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Court documents obtained by local Fox affiliate WXIN stated that Grant, who was driving a Chevy Tahoe, was “all over the roadway,” according to a witness who spoke to police. That witness, along with their passenger, reportedly told police that they saw Grant pass them in her Tahoe while allegedly putting on makeup while looking in the mirror.
According to court documents, Grant was driving at about 68 mph when she plowed into the back of the Explorer carrying James and his grandparents while it was waiting to make a left-hand turn off State Road 44. The impact sent the Explorer spinning into the path of a minivan heading westbound, resulting in another collision. Grant and her Tahoe were then struck by a Jeep heading eastbound, leaving damage to four vehicles.
Police said that Grant admitted to using methamphetamine and marijuana “within the past few days” when they questioned her following the crash. All the drivers involved consented to blood tests — Grant tested positive for amphetamine and methamphetamine, according to local NBC affiliate WTHR.
The court documents stated that Grant allegedly claimed to police that she was paying attention to the road, was not on her phone at the time, and insisted that she simply could not stop her car in time to avoid the collision. Witnesses reportedly told police that Grant never hit her brakes in the moments leading up to the crash. Her vehicle data recorder indicated that she hit her brakes half a second before making impact with the Explorer.
Grant was formally charged with two counts of operating a vehicle while under the influence of a substance and causing death on May 9, but was not taken into custody until May 28. She is being held on $10,000 bond at the Shelby County Jail and remains in custody. Her next court date is June 25.
