PONTIAC, Mich. – A hit-and-run driver who struck a 12-year-old boy riding a bicycle in Pontiac earlier this year will spend time in prison for the life-threatening crash, a judge ruled Tuesday.
Dominique Antonio Amos was sentenced to 18 months to five years in prison for striking Christian Castle, who was in critical condition but survived the crash.
Amos faced Judge Nanci Grant with a jumpsuit and handcuffs on.
Christian's aunt, Laura Coburn, said "little Christian" will never be the same.
"He loved running," Coburn said. "He thought he was the fastest person in the world. He can’t run now. He has to have a brace on his leg because the signal in his brain doesn’t tell his leg to step. He’s at a second-grade level, as opposed to be a seventh grader."
Officers said Amos hit the boy at 4:02 p.m. Jan. 7 with his 1996 Econoline van on Baldwin Road near Garner Street in Pontiac.
He kept driving after the impact, police said.
About a month later, police arrested Amos in central Illinois.
"What affects our family the most is all of the actions that were taken after the accident," Coburn said. "The decision to make sure he wasn’t on the van. The decision to make sure his bike wasn’t there. The decision to leave the van. The decision to leave the keys. The decision to flee the state of Michigan. Instead of owning to your mistake and owning to your accident, like a man, you fled like a child."
Amos will have to pay fines in addition to his prison sentence.
"We’re not upset about the accident," Coburn said. "We’re upset about your decisions after the accident. We’re hurt that you didn’t even bother to find out what happened to the little boy that you hit. We hope that this will give you the opportunity to reform yourself."
You can watch the full sentencing in the video below.