The Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office has announced the owner of the dump truck involved in the August 2022 fatal crash in Lower Providence Township has been arrested in Virginia and is awaiting extradition to Montgomery County.
In October 2022, an arrest warrant was issued for Patrick Doran, 24, of Gaithersburg, Md., in connection with the Aug. 25, 2022, crash that killed 31-year-old Kellie Adams, of Lansdale, and her unborn baby, Emersyn Grace Adams. Officials said Doran was recently located in Fairfax County, Va., and is awaiting extradition on charges of homicide by vehicle and related offenses.
The driver of the truck, identified as 56-year-old Everett Clayton, of Charleston, W. Va., was also charged with homicide by vehicle in October 2022, however those charges were later upgraded to third-degree murder.
Adams was the daughter of longtime Lansdale Borough Police Sergeant and former Towamencin Fire Chief Dean Miller.
First responders were dispatched to the 500 block of South Park Avenue at 3 p.m. on Aug. 25, 2022, for a report of a two-vehicle crash. Arriving police found a head-on crash had occurred between a 2021 Chevy Tahoe, driven by Adams, and a 2003 Ford F650 XLT Super Duty dump truck, driven by Clayton. Adams was pronounced dead at the scene, and her unborn baby was later delivered stillborn, according to the district attorney’s office.
Clayton, who was uninjured, allegedly confessed he had been drinking beers, and blood testing later showed he had a blood-alcohol content of .076% — just under the legal limit of .08%, investigators said.
According to the criminal complaint, crash scene investigators determined Clayton was traveling in excess of the speed limit as he approached a curve in the road, causing him to lose control and cross over the double-yellow lines. The dump truck collided with the Tahoe with such force that the Tahoe lost all forward momentum and the dump-body portion of the truck detached and fell off, police said.
Clayton was initially charged in October 2022 with homicide by vehicle along with additional charges of careless driving/unintentional death, reckless driving, driving at unsafe speed and related offenses. However, the charges were upgraded to third-degree murder of Adams and third-degree murder of an unborn child after investigators alleged that Clayton “exhibited sustained recklessness over a period of time leading up to the fatal crash,” which meets the standards for third-degree murder charges.
Investigators said Doran had purchased the vehicle on July 6, 2022, under a fake name and never had the vehicle registered, inspected, or insured as required by state law. Additionally, the truck was being operated by “Stellar Paving and Drainage” with a listed address as 1960 Butler Pike in Conshohocken, which actually turned out to be a PO Box at a UPS store that was also rented by Doran under the same fake name, according to charging documents.
“The defendant knew that this dump truck was not properly inspected, licensed or road-worthy, yet he recklessly put that dump truck on the road where it was turned into a lethal weapon, killing a young, pregnant mother and her unborn baby,” said Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele. “The deaths of this beloved wife and mother and her baby have caused overwhelming heartache for the family and the community. Our team will continue to work to seek justice for the taking of these innocent lives.”
Doran was also initially charged in October 2022 with homicide by vehicle, along with additional charges of permitting violation of title, operating vehicle without required financial responsibility, operating vehicle without valid inspection, and multiple other offenses.
Officials said Doran will be arraigned once he has been extradited to Montgomery County, meaning bail and his booking image are not currently available.
The case will be prosecuted by First Assistant District Attorney Edward F. McCann Jr. and Assistant District Attorney Gabrielle Hughes.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using court records and the affidavit of probable cause. This story was updated to reflect the child's current custody status.
See also:
Murder Charges Filed Against Dump Truck Driver in Death of Pregnant Lansdale Woman
Dump Truck Driver, Owner Charged in Death of Pregnant Lansdale Woman
Lansdale Woman ID’d as Victim of Fatal Crash in Lower Providence
