Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
EAGLE MOUNTAIN — The parents of a 3-year-old boy hit and killed by an allegedly impaired driver in Eagle Mountain hope the driver never sees a day of freedom again.
"I hope he gets locked up forever," said a heartbroken father, Jeromey Jackson, when speaking about what happened to his son, Hunter. "There is no reason this accident should have happened, at all."
Hunter was with his best friend, Odin Ratliff, who was also just 3 years old, at the Cedar Valley Stables in Eagle Mountain when the two were hit and killed. Hunter's older sister worked at the stables and would often bring the boys because they liked to see the horses.
They were playing when suddenly, investigators say, a car driven by Kent Cody Barlow, 25, from Eagle Mountain, came off the roadway, traveling over 100 miles per hour, and smashed through a gated arena and into the stables, landing upside down about 350 feet off the road.
Hunter and Oden were killed instantly, police say.
"He was always smiling," said a tearful Brooke Jackson, Hunter's mom. "He had the cutest dimples, that everybody loved when he smiled. He wanted everybody to be his best friend."
She was also at the stables when the crash happened just after 7 p.m. Monday. She witnessed the gruesome scene.
Three passengers were also in the car. All of them, along with the driver, were taken to the hospital, but have since been treated and released.
"One car did all of this. One car speeding did thousands and hundreds of thousands of dollar's worth of damage and two little kids are dead," Brooke Jackson said.
Deputies said Barlow, who has a long and dangerous criminal history, was high on methamphetamine when he crashed the car. He was also on parole after recently being released from prison.
"What was he even doing out behind the wheel of a car?" Hunter's father said.
"The Life Flight came for them, the ambulance came for them and they're the ones that caused this mess. They shouldn't get out (of jail). I don't get my boy back. You don't get your life back," Brooke Jackson said.
Barlow now faces 10 charges, including two counts of automobile homicide.
The Jacksons say the road in front of the stables is also a big concern. They say people speed on it all the time, and it's time for the city to do something.
The owner of the stables, Aaron Wall, said it's a private road and that, all of a sudden, equipment showed up one day and started building it.
He said the accident is the result of the very thing he's been complaining to the city about for a long time.
"I can't make sense of it," Wall said. "It's ruined many lives."
A GoFundMe* for the two boys can be found here.
*Disclaimer: KSL.com has not verified the accuracy of the information provided with respect to the account nor does KSL.com assure that the monies deposited will be applied for the benefit of the persons named as beneficiaries. If you are considering a deposit or donation you should consult your own advisers and otherwise proceed at your own risk.
