Detroit Kettering High School students are saddened after the loss of two classmates in a fatal car accident early Wednesday morning on the city's eastside. (Photo by HB Meeks/Tell Us Detroit)

2 Detroit Teens Killed 2 Others Injured In Auto Accident


DETROIT (Tell Us Det) - Two Detroit Kettering High School students died and two others were injured after a vehicle they were traveling in lost control and crashed near the intersection of Van Dyke and Harper early Wednesday morning after a high school graduation party.

An 11th-grader and a 12th-grader in the school's Allied Health Program were killed in the crash, Principal Leroy Bougard said. Another 11th-grader and a 12th-grader also in the health program were injured. All four were 18-year-old men.

Students and staff identified the two students killed as Alex Farr and Derek Neal. The two students injured are LaRon "Mook" Parrish and William "Bill" Anthony. Fellow classmates say three of the crash victims were standout athletes who played football for the school.



Police are uncertain what led to the crash or if alcohol was a factor in the incident. Investigators have received conflicting information about the crash and are sorting through details. The accident happened just after midnight.

Kettering principal Leroy Bougard said the students involved in the crash were the type who made it worth being an educator. "This is more than horrific, it is devastating," Bougard said.


Fighting to hold back tears, Fred Farr, Alex's father said, "It was just a wonderful day yesterday, or was supposed to be." This was not supposed to happen." (Photo by HB Meeks/Tell Us Detroit)

Farr and Neal were wide receivers on the football team and among the most popular kids at the school, students said. "They were good people, funny, everybody liked them,” said Shartese Brown, 16, who lived next door to Farr.

The two 12th-graders were in the school's Allied Health Program, a special curriculum at Kettering that allows students to earn a high school diploma and college credit in the health professions.

"They were both good guys," schoolmate Curtis Harris, 17, said. Neal was "cool and laid-back" and Farr wanted to be an Air Force doctor, Harris said.

"A good kid, sweet, quiet," said Tirana Gowens, Derek's mother.

For Derek's parents, the heartbreak is inexplicable. This is the second son they've lost to a car accident. His younger brother was killed by a hit and run driver eight years ago and would have turned 15 on Sunday.

Detroit police declined to say if alcohol or speed was a factor in the crash, but said none of the four teens was wearing a seat belt.