Becky Henley is amazed by how well her fiance is doing, just a few months after he was struck by a car during a carjacking in Cedar Hill.
Joseph Bates, 31, of House Springs was struck by the car on May 20 outside a Moto Mart gas station in Cedar Hill and suffered brain injuries, a broken leg, a fractured shoulder and multiple facial fracturs, Henley said.
Brandon VanDoren, 23, of Mehlville and Matthew Carver, 27, of St. Louis were arrested in connection with the alleged theft and assault, and both men are facing charges filed by the Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office and the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
After the accident, Bates was on a ventilator and spent seven weeks in the intensive-care unit before being moved to inpatient rehabilitation on July 8 and being released from the hospital on July 15, Henley said.
“With everything that he has been through, it really is extraordinary how far he has come in this short amount of time,” said Henley, who has two daughters with Bates and is expecting their third child this month. “Especially, when we were told he probably wouldn’t make it past 24 hours.”
She said Bates was in a coma for the first three weeks in the hospital, and because of concerns about the spread of COVID-19, he was not allowed to have visitors for the first five weeks.
“It was horrible,” Henley said.
Henley said Bates is talking, and walking with the assistance of a boot, but has not fully recovered from the accident.
“He is starting to do things around the house like he used to do, like cutting the grass and changing the oil in our riding lawnmower,” Henley said of Bates, who is a mechanic. “Overall, the brain injury is the most difficult to navigate. He has to retrain his brain. The doctor explained it to us that the brain has to find new pathways, which is extremely difficult. It is challenging for him. It is exhausting.”
Henley said Bates has been coping pretty well with challenges in front of him.
“I’m not saying he doesn’t get frustrated when he is trying to do something and can’t the way he used to be able to do it, but in all honesty, he is taking everything in stride and handling it really well,” she said. “He impresses me every single day with the way he is handling everything.”
Henley said she and Bates are doing their best to deal with the economic strain the accident has caused them.
Bates is unable to work as a mechanic, and while Henley recently earned a degree to teach elementary school after working in the health profession, she is not working right now because she is pregnant and has to take care of the couple’s daughters.
Fortunately, family and friends have helped the couple since the accident, and strangers have offered financial support, too, Henley said.
About $9,200 was raised for the family through a GoFundMe page, and in August, a benefit was held in Eureka to raise money for the family.
“We can’t express how grateful we are for our friends and family who are helping us,” Henley said. “It is overwhelming in the best way possible. Just to know there are still good people out there, who are willing to help. It is strangers we don’t know, and the community as a whole has rallied together to help us.
“We are extremely grateful for the GoFundMe and benefit. Without that, we would be in big trouble. It is difficult.”
The accident
Henley said Bates has no recollection of what happened May 20.
She said he had been working on a 2007 Saturn Aura for his uncle at the couple’s House Springs home, and he was driving it back to his uncle when he stopped at the gas station, 8489 Local Hillsboro Road, in Cedar Hill.
Carver and VanDoren arrived at the station in a 2013 Dodge Dart, and VanDoren allegedly got out of the Dart and stole the Saturn, which Bates reportedly left unlocked with the keys inside while he went into the convenience store.
When Bates saw his uncle’s car was being driven away, he ran after it and was hit by the Saturn as it turned right onto Hwy. 30, the Missouri State Highway Patrol reported.
Bates was transported by Big River Ambulance to Mercy Hospital South in south St. Louis County, the U.S. Attorney’s Office reported.
“At first there was about two weeks’ worth of memory that he had lost,” Henley said. “He had been turkey hunting (before the accident), and he thought he was in a hunting accident (when he woke up in the hospital). He has gained some memories back, but there is close to about a weeks’ worth of memory that he has lost.”
Henley said she remembers a lot of what happened that night.
She was home with the couple’s youngest daughter when Bates’ uncle called to find out where his nephew was because he hadn’t arrived with the car. At first no one could find Bates, and the uncle drove to the gas station near his home where the accident occurred because he heard the sirens and saw the emergency personnel there.
“(Bates’ uncle) told them he was looking for his nephew,” Henley said. “He was told to go to Mercy South. His uncle got (Bates’) mom and me, and we drove up there.
“Eventually, they let us in to see him for about five minutes. Then he went to ICU, and we didn’t’ see him for five weeks. We weren’t sure what had happened.”
She said a Missouri State Highway Patrol officer later filled in the family in on what happened.
“If it hadn’t been for the good Samaritan who saw the accident happen and called 911, I don’t know if they would have caught these guys,” Henley said. “They may have eventually, but who knows how long it would have taken to catch up with these guys. There is a sense of relief knowing they were apprehended as quickly as they were.
“It is not fair, and it was a completely senseless act that could have been avoided, but we are still grateful and blessed. The outcome could have been so much worse.”
The arrests
At about 8:40 p.m. May 20, a Sheriff’s Office deputy saw the Dodge and Saturn traveling east on Hwy. 30 toward House Springs.
The cars turned onto Hwy. MM, which turns into Hwy. M, and eventually the drivers of the two cars attempted to get onto the northbound I-55 entrance ramp. The Saturn got onto the interstate, but while the Dodge was making the turn to get on I-55 interstate, it crashed, the Sheriff’s Office reported.
Carver got out of the Dodge and allegedly attempted to run away. After a struggle with deputies, one of them used a stun gun to subdue Carver, and he was taken into custody, the report said.
During the investigation, deputies learned the Dodge had been reported stolen from Creve Coeur, Sheriff’s Office spokesman Grant Bissell said.
On May 21, a St. Louis County Police officer spotted the Saturn in south St. Louis County in a hotel parking lot and notified the Sheriff’s Office, Bissell said.
Law enforcement officers found VanDoren in a hotel room and arrested him. The officers also allegedly found a gun and narcotics in the room, the U.S. Attorney’s Office reported.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office also reported that Facebook Live videos posted on May 20, before the alleged carjacking, allegedly showed VanDoren and Carver holding the gun found in the hotel room.
In addition to the federal charges, the Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office has charged Carver with first-degree accessory to robbery, a class A felony; resisting arrest and leaving the scene of an accident, both class E felonies; possession of a controlled substance, a class D felony; and driving while under the influence, a class B misdemeanor, court records show.
The Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office has charged VanDoren with first-degree robbery, a class A felony; armed criminal action, an unclassified felony; and leaving the scene of an accident and resisting arrest, both class E felonies, according to court records.
A class A felony is punishable by 10 to 30 years or life in prison; a class D felony carries a penalty of up to seven years in prison; a class E felony is punishable by up to four years in prison; and the unclassified felony carries a penalty of at least three years in prison. The class B misdemeanor is punishable by up to six months in jail and a fine of up to $1,000.
“We do want justice for (Bates),” Henley said. “These two guys, I don’t want to say they ruined his life, because he is still alive. He is walking, talking and is here for his kids. But they took a huge part of his life away, and that is not fair. To see someone who is a hard worker, who provided for his family and would give his shirt off his back to help someone, and now you see the state he is in, it is just sad.
“As unfair as this situation is, we still feel we are blessed, because he is still here and can still be part of our family.”