Woman now faces murder charges for car/pedestrian crash
Howes accused of running over her husband with a vehicle
By TRAVIS MORSE
Melissa Howes
MOUNT VERNON — A 54-year-old Centralia woman now faces murder charges in Jefferson County, in connection with a car/pedestrian crash on Sept. 2 in the Dollar General parking lot in Dix.
Melissa Howes, the defendant, is accused of pushing her 49-year-old husband, Jeffrey Howes, to the ground and then running him over with a vehicle. The murder charges allege that she did this knowing that the act would result in Jeffrey Howes’ death.
Melissa Howes was initially charged with aggravated driving under the influence. She now faces formal charges that include two counts of murder and two Class 2 felony counts of aggravated DUI, local court records state.
Online media reports indicate that there is video evidence allegedly showing the defendant shoving her husband down in the parking lot, after which she allegedly got into the vehicle, backed up and pulled forward, running him over.
According to Sentinel archives, the incident in question was reported at 8:05 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 2, at the Dix Dollar General, 101 S. Main St. Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office incident logs state that there was a “person vs. car” accident and that the person was “under the car.”
Media reports at the time indicated that a sheriff’s deputy and bystander were able to jack up the car and get the vehicle off of the man, later identified as Jeffrey Howes. The victim was in cardiac arrest and CPR was initiated by Jefferson Fire Protection District, with ambulance personnel later joining the effort.
Jeffrey Howes was taken to SSM Health Good Samaritan Hospital in Mount Vernon, where he was later pronounced dead, the archives state.
A petition to deny Melissa Howes’ pretrial release was granted at a Thursday court hearing, and she was ordered held at the local jail without bond. However, the defendant filed a motion for relief and a relief hearing, where she can argue for her release from jail. It will be held at 2 p.m. on Sept. 10. A preliminary hearing has been set for 9 a.m. on Sept. 24, court records state.
Attorneys were unavailable for comment for this story.
