Four-year-old dies after
April 2023 two-car wreck
By Becky Long
Publisher
A Clay County man pled guilty Monday, Oct. 14 to misdemeanor death by vehicle which involved a 2023 wreck that led to the death of 4-year old twin, Myles Christopher Godfrey, of Hayesville.
Sammy Lee Edward Stamey, 49, was initially charged with failure to reduce speed but later the charge of misdemeanor death by vehicle was added.
During Monday’s session of district court, Stamey was sentenced to a minimum of 30 days confinement in the Clay County Jail, unsupervised probation for 24 months and community service.
The charge against Stamey, also of Hayesville, stemmed from a two-vehicle accident that occurred at about 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 18, 2023.
Stamey was traveling east in a 2020 Ford pickup when he struck the rear section of a 2022 Kia Cordova van, driven by Myle’s mother, Kaci Jones as she was turning left onto Forsythia Lane in Hayesville, according to the initial Highway Patrol report.
Stamey, who was alone in his vehicle, was transported via helicopter to Northeast Georgia Medical Center in Gainesville and eventually released.
Jones had been traveling with Myles, his twin brother and her other young child. Both twins were initially transported by helicopter, one to Scottish Rites in Atlanta and the other to Erlanger Hospital in Chattanooga. The third child was not transported for medical care. Jones was transported to Chattanooga for observation.
Myles died four days later on April 22.
He was the son of Kaci Jones and Mason Godfrey, both of Hayesville. He was the brother of Kyler Bentley Godfrey and Ryder Colt Hank Jones. He was preceded in death by a brother, Kaeson Bentley Godfrey.
Myles was remembered as a sweet boy with a heart full of love. He was said to have a wonderful sense of humor.
“He was the sunshine at the end of a long hard day for his dad and the best snuggler his mom could ask for,” the family wrote in Myles’ obituary.