Jury trial to begin for man charged in Moore High runners' deaths

Jamie Berry, The Norman Transcript, Okla.
·2 min read

Jun. 13—A jury trial will begin Monday morning in Cleveland County District Judge Lori Walkley's courtroom for a man charged in the Feb. 3, 2020 death of three Moore High School track and cross country runners.

Max Leroy Townsend, 58, of Tuttle, is facing 10 charges, including three counts each of second-degree murder and leaving the scene of a fatality accident, and four counts of leaving the scene of an accident involving injury.

According to police, Townsend was driving 65-70 mph while a group of Moore cross country students ran in a neighborhood near the school.

Investigators recovered video footage from the school and residents that shows his Ford-F250 pickup hitting a vehicle then ramming into the students, causing some of them to become airborne.

Moore senior Rachel Freeman died at the scene. Sophomore Yuridia Martinez and senior Kolby Crum died later from their injuries. Several other students were injured.

Police said Townsend had family members living in the area and may have been suffering from grief after his 29-year-old son died in an automobile wreck the day before in Moore.

Moore police found signs that Townsend was impaired when officers conducted a field sobriety test. His blood was drawn and sent to the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation.

Townsend's attorneys include Kevin Butler and Sadie J. Flynn, both from Oklahoma City.

According to the Oklahoma State Courts Network, more than 100 witnesses have been endorsed by state attorneys. Three additional charges related to the hit and run were removed July 29.

Townsend remains in Cleveland County jail custody on $1.2 million bond.

Townsend has a past criminal history, including DUI convictions in 1997 and 2003 that got him suspended sentences in McClain County. He also was charged with DUIs in 2003 in Marshall County and in 2014 in Grady County, but those charges were dismissed.

He pleaded guilty to child abuse in 2002 and no contest in 2005 to possession of a controlled dangerous substance and possession of stolen property, all filed in Grady County. In 2003, he pleaded guilty in Marshall County to a misdemeanor charge of leaving the scene of an accident involving property damage, and in 2014, he was charged with stalking in Canadian County, but that charge was dismissed.

Jamie Berry covers police and court news for The Transcript. Reach her at jberry@normantranscript.com, 366-3532 or @JamieStitches13.