< Back to front page Text size – +

New charges filed in Lowell hit-and-run

E-mail|Link|Comments () November 26, 2009 01:03 PM

By Jack Nicas, Globe Correspondent

Police filed four additional charges today against a teen driver who allegedly hit a 12-year-old boy in a Lowell crosswalk last week and then rushed off to a hair appointment.

Lowell police said they charged Michelle P. Medeiros, 17, of Methuen with negligent operation of a motor vehicle, a criminal misdemeanor that carries a maximum two-year sentence in a house of corrections. They also filed three motor vehicle infractions against her, which carry a total of at least $335 in fines. No arraignment has been set.

Last week Medeiros, whose license has been revoked, was charged with leaving the scene of a personal injury accident, also a criminal misdemeanor that carries a maximum two-year sentence.

Police alleged that she sped through a busy intersection on VFW Highway on Nov. 18 and struck Kelvin Savanhmixay of Lowell, throwing him more than 20 feet.

Savanhmixay, who underwent facial reconstruction surgery that placed three metal plates under his skin, returned home last night after a week stay in the hospital, family said. But unable to eat solid food, the seventh-grader will refrain from Thanksgiving dinner.

"He’s alright. He’s a kid; he doesn’t know what to think of it all," said his stepfather, Danny Savanhmixay. "He’s just happy to be home with family and friends."

Investigation of the crash has been completed, but additional charges may be filed based on the investigation of Medeiros’s actions after the hit and run accident, Lowell police officer Francisco Maldonado said in a phone interview today.

“These charges are just strictly related to the motor vehicle crash,” he said. “For additional charges in regards to the actions to conceal a crime, that’s still under investigation.”

After the 2:30 p.m. accident at the intersection of Mammoth Road, Medeiros made a 3 p.m. hair appointment in Lawrence, while Savanhmixay was rushed to Lowell General Hospital and later airlifted to Boston, police said.

After the stop at the salon, Medeiros called her parents to tell them her car had been damaged in the parking lot. Her parents picked her up and filed a report with Lawrence police. The car, with a smashed windshield, was towed to Best Auto Body & Repair in Methuen, whose owner is a friend of Medeiros’s father.

Michael Murray, owner of Best Auto, said he had already seen the car when he first heard about the hit-and-run, but did not suspect it was involved. “The family told me the car was vandalized,’’ he said, adding that the family are regular customers.

The day after the accident, Medeiros, a Methuen High School senior, attended school.

The new motor vehicle infractions filed against Medeiros are: passing a vehicle stopped for a pedestrian in a crosswalk; failure to use caution when changing lanes; and operating at a speed greater than reasonable and proper.