Alleged Chester gang member who hit 2 children on moped gets 7 years prison

An alleged Chester gang member who was out on bond in April when he hit two York teens on a moped then fled was sentenced to seven years in prison Monday.

In the April hit-and-run, Montell DeAngelo Cousar, 24, a ninth-grade dropout who is the father of five children, was driving on U.S. 321 between York and Chester at almost 10 p.m. when he hit the moped with children ages 13 and 14 on it.

The older of the teens Zaymion Adams, suffered brain injuries and a fractured skull. The younger child, Donavon Allen, had road rash down to the bone in his legs.

Cousar, whom prosecutors said Monday is a member of the Eastside Murder Gang in Chester and was out on bond on murder, attempted murder and weapons charges at the time of the April hit-and-run, did not render any aid, testimony showed Monday.

Cousar dragged the moped under his car about 200 feet, said Megan Fuller, 6th Circuit assistant solicitor. He then pulled the moped out from under the car, fixed his car grill and hid the car before claiming he hit a deer, Fuller said.

Both children now face emotional and psychological trauma, according to prosecutors and their parents.

Ginny Howe, Zaymion Adams’ mother, said Cousar left her son “in the middle of the road” after the crash.

Howe said she was “shocked,” to find out Cousar was out on bond for murder and other charges when her son was hit.

“Why was he even out in the first place?” Howe asked after court.

Zaymion Adams was in court Monday but did not address the court. Afterward, he said prosecutors “fought for us” after Cousar hit them and fled.

Cousar was released on bond for the hit-and-run in August. Then while on bond, he was arrested on six felony drug charges in Chester County on Sept. 21, according to court and jail records.

April Root, mother of Donavon Allen, said Cousar fleeing without checking to see if anyone was hurt was “inhumane.”

Cousar faced a maximum of 11 years after pleading guilty to charges for each child but was sentenced to seven years by Circuit Judge Dan Hall.

In court Monday, Cousar rambled concerning his actions in not stopping in the April crash, calling what happened an “accident” and his decision to flee the scene “a mistake.”

Defense lawyer Mike Duncan of Columbia said his client “panicked” when he drove away without checking on the kids. Duncan denied that Cousar is in a gang.

Cousar was asked about tattoos covering his face and neck by the judge, but Cousar said the tattoos were “Biblical.”

Cousar once had been charged with murder in Chester and was on bond in April but that charge was later dismissed by prosecutors from the S.C. Attorney General’s Office. Cousar still faces several charges in Chester County. He had been arrested in the past year on weapons and other charges, and was arrested by Chester police just two weeks before the hit-and-run.

This story was originally published October 26, 2015 at 11:49 AM with the headline "Alleged Chester gang member who hit 2 children on moped gets 7 years prison."