Commerce elementary student dies in “unfortunate” collision

COMMERCE, Okla. — A Miami man involved in a fatal accident that killed a Commerce student is in custody. Douglas Gray, 67, of Miami, is being held in the Ottawa County jail on a pending charge of first-degree manslaughter involving a fatal crash, according to Ottawa County Sheriff's Department online records. "A preliminary investigation indicates the child's death was the result of an unfortunate accident and not caused by the alleged consumption of alcohol," said District Attorney Doug Pewitt. Pewitt and the Oklahoma Highway Patrol said the cause of the crash is under investigation, but what is known is that the fatal crash happened around 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday on South 490 Road, approximately seven miles west of Commerce. Gray was driving a 2018 Can-Am Defender. He and his passengers, Kaytelin Freeman, 31; Rodney Freeman, 36, and Noah Williams, 19, all of Miami, were uninjured. A Can-Am Defender is a side-by-side utility vehicle. The child was flown by helicopter to St. Francis Hospital in Tulsa, where he died, the patrol said. The OHP crash report says the child was a pedestrian, but does not include any other information. The 9-year-old's name has not been released. Commerce Public Schools sent the following statement: