EVANSVILLE, IN (WFIE) -
Evansville Police have arrested the driver of the truck involved in yesterday's traffic accident that injured a child riding a bicycle.
10-year-old Jaivontae Armstrong is in the hospital with a severe head injury, after being hit by a truck driven by 50-year-old Donald Catiller.
It was a troubling scene at the corner of Aviation and Morgan, as police were assessing what exactly happened.
At about 5:00 p.m. Sunday evening, Evansville Police say they were called to that intersection after Armstrong, apparently rode his bike into the street and was struck by a trailer that was being pulled by a truck.
Police say Armstrong lives in that neighborhood. They also said that they aren't certain of the boy's condition, but that he did suffer a major head injury, and that he is in critical condition at Deaconess Hospital.
Evansville Police Department's Karen Kajmowicz was there, and she says Armstrong was conscious and talking when paramedics arrived.
"Head injuries are so misleading. You know, sometimes you're talking and things go south. Sometimes they're not talking and they're perfectly fine. So, we don't want to take any chances and we always kind of treat it as if it's a very serious injury," said Kajmowicz.
EPD said that they called a reconstructionist to the intersection shortly after the incident to determine whether alcohol or another substance was involved or if this was simply an accident.
Officers investigating the incident listed the failure to yield by the bicyclist as the primary cause of the crash.
Catiller submitted to a drug and alcohol screening. Police are awaiting the results.
Catiller was arrested for driving without a license and operating a vehicle without insurance.
Officials say Armstrong's condition has been upgraded from critical to fair this morning.
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Source: Vanderburgh Co. Jail
