JANESVILLE - Speed and possible drug use may have been contributing factors in a crash that left a teen from Beloit dead and other young people injured, according to a criminal complaint.
Carter R. Perteete, 17, of Beloit, faces charges of homicide by negligent operation of a vehicle, two counts of reckless driving causing great bodily harm and reckless driving causing injury.
He was the driver of a vehicle that left the roadway and flipped over along South Emerald Grrove Road near East Larsen Road in the Town of Bradford on Nov. 4. A 15-year-old Beloit male was pronounced dead on the scene of the crash.
Rock County Sheriff's deputies and Clinton EMS were dispatched to the crash scene around 3:30 p.m. where they found a Volkswagen hatchback on its side in a cornfield west of South Emerald Grove Road, according to a criminal complaint.
The vehicle's engine had been dislodged and was on fire in the cornfield about 50 feet northeast of the vehicle. A deputy found a 15-year-old who had been ejected from the vehicle and he began performing CPR on the crash victim. However, the youth was pronounced dead on the scene.
It was learned that there were five occupants of the vehicle.
A deputy found several vape pens with at least one containing a THC cartridge. Another deputy found "four THC vapes," according to the criminal complaint.
Deputies questioned the passengers in the vehicle. One passenger said "he was driving way too fast and we rolled." Another estimated the vehicle was traveling at a speed of about 70 mph before it came over the hill and crashed. A deputy's report stated, due to the severity of the crash scene, it is believed that the vehicle was traveling well over the posted speed limit of 45 mph.
Some of the passengers acknowledged they had been smoking the THC cartridges while others said they were not, according to the court documents.
Several of the passengers were injured with one suffering a broken pelvis and collarbone, and another suffering a concussion, according to court documents.
The criminal complaint also noted Perteete violated his probationary license rules by having more than one person as a passenger and having no immediate family members in the vehicle.
Perteete was released on a $50,000 signature bond and conditions of his release included he is not to drive any vehicle and he is not to have contact with any of the victims or their families.
He is scheduled for a preliminary hearing in Rock County Circuit Court at 9 a.m., Nov. 25.
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