Two area men were killed in a two-car accident that occurred north of Gallup on U.S. Highway 491 March 16.
Pronounced dead at the scene were Jordan Harvey, 19, of Tohatchi, and Nathan Damon, 49, of Yah-Ta-Hay.
According to McKinley County Sheriff’s Dep. James Garylie, the accident occurred about 6:50 pm near the entrance to the Shell Gas Station on Tohlakai road, some 10 miles north of Gallup.
Harvey and Damon were both in a vehicle driven by Jowell Jameson, 19, of Yah-Ta-Hay. The other vehicle was driven by Geraldine Haley, 49, of Vanderwagen, who had her 14-year-old son in the car with her.
Garylie said when he got to the scene, deputies were in the process of removing Jameson carefully from her truck because she was complaining of pain to her back and neck. Garylie said after cutting her seatbelt to help her remain stable, he noticed that the passenger in the back, later identified as Damon, was deceased.
He then went to Haley and her son who were about 50 yards away sitting in the ground. She said she was feeling discomfort but was all right. Her son said he just felt shaken up.
When asked what happened, she said she and her son were returning from Farmington and she was in the process of passing the gas station when the pickup just pulled in front of her. She said she had no time to stop.
By this time Jameson had been placed on a gurney and was in the process of being transported to the Gallup Indian Medical Center.
When Garylie went back to the truck, he received confirmation that it was Damon in the backseat and Harvey, who was Jameson’s boyfriend, had been in the front passenger seat.
By this time, the families of both victims had arrived at the scene and Garylie said he talked to them and asked them to keep the accident area clear. He told them if they had any questions, he would be glad to answer them.
Later, he went to Gallup and talked to Jameson at the hospital and asked her what happened.
She said she and her boyfriend and gone into Gallup to pick up a mattress. While they were there, they also picked up Damon, her uncle, who was intoxicated. She said as they were driving him home, he kept distracting her.
When they got to the Shell station, she said she was going to go in to get gas but as she did, her uncle grabbed her arm and distracted her so she was looking at him and not the road when the accident occurred.
Garylie said he later went back to see Haley and tell her that the accident had not been her fault. He added that although Jameson was at fault for the accident even though she was distracted, she would not face any criminal charges.
