Man accused of hitting kids denied bond
ATLANTA - A judge denied bond Monday for a man accused of killing a little boy and injuring two others in a crash last Friday in Atlanta.
Police said Ryan Lisabeth was driving under the influence of drugs when he crashed into three boys at Joseph E. Boone Boulevard and Mayson Turner Road Friday night.
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Isaiah Ward, 8, was killed in the wreck. His 11-year-old brother, Roland, and their friend, 12-year-old Timothy Hood, remain in the hospital.
Monday during his first appearance in a Fulton County court, officials said the deadly crash was not the first time the driver was impaired by illegal drugs.
Going back 10 years, a judge heard an outline of the driver's criminal history. It includes cocaine and heroin use. Officials said there were at least three previous times Lisabeth got behind the wheel while under the influence. He was convicted in those incidents.
A defense lawyer asked that he be granted bond and immediately be transferred to rehab. The request was denied.
"I will never see him again," said Isaiah's uncle, Freddie Smith. "He won't know what it's like to graduate from high school, to go to prom."
Family members said the boy was loved by all who met him. Friends said he was named "Student of the Month" at Bethune Elementary on Friday.
Atlanta Police arrested Lisabeth, 28, at the scene and charged him with driving under the influence of drugs, three counts of serious injury, reckless driving, driving on the wrong side of the road and possession of a controlled substance.
Atlanta Police said Lisabeth hit a truck before veering off the road and into the children, then struck another vehicle before the car stopped.
Family members said Roland Ward is still recovering at Grady Memorial Hospital. Hood, according to his parents, is at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta at Egleston.
"That's my best friend in there fighting and it's not right," said Teresa Lawrence, Hood's mother. "I want justice and I won't rest until I get justice for my son."