Man in fatal crash lost son day prior

OKLAHOMA CITY – The man arrested for driving into a group a high school cross-country runners in suburban Oklahoma City, killing two and injuring four, was talking to himself and spoke of his son, killed in a car crash the day before, a man who spoke with him moments after the crash said Wednesday.

Joe Gonzales said he went to Max Leroy Townsend’s truck after it stopped Monday afternoon in the street outside Gonzales’ home about three blocks from where the Moore High School students were struck. “He was just talking to himself, looking for his phone,” and said “I just lost my son,” according to Gonzales.

Townsend’s son, Cody Townsend, died in a car crash on Sunday in Moore.

Townsend, 57, is jailed on charges of manslaughter and failing to stop and render aid. Police have said they suspect alcohol was a factor, according to Sgt. Jeremy Lewis, but results from toxicology tests were pending.