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Mom grieves for child lost in Helena creek
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Mom grieves for child lost in Helena creek http://bloximages.chicago2.vip.town...32-001cc4c002e0/4e0a1813838ef.preview-300.jpg
The Missoulian
A memorial for 3-year old Leo Mathis has been erected near the spot on Prickly Pear Creek where he went into the water and died. Donations for Leo Mathis funeral are being accepted at any American Federal Bank in the state under the name Leo Mathis Jr. Memorial Fund. ELIZA WILEY/Independent Record
HELENA – Leslie Dillon is making arrangements to bury her 3-year-old boy.
She is also trying to get her boyfriend’s bail reduced so he can attend the services in Washington, from where the couple moved just days before the death of their son.
Her boyfriend is accused of negligent homicide in the little boy’s drowning death.
“It doesn’t seem real. I know he’s with God, but I feel he should be here with me,†Dillon said.
“He was here 3 1/2 years and then gone in two seconds,†she added.
Leo Eugene Mathis Jr. – affectionately known as “Little Man†– drowned in Prickly Pear Creek last Wednesday evening.
“I miss my little boy. He’s my world. My little boy is my life,†Dillon said.
Authorities arrested the boy’s father, Leo Eugene Mathis Sr., on Friday on a felony charge of negligent homicide.
Directly following their son’s death, the couple planned to return to Washington, where they would be surrounded – and comforted – by family. That was before Mathis, 26, was arrested.
“We’re going to stay here and fight this to the end,†she said of the charge.
Dillon said the allegations of negligence are false.
“I would never leave my son with someone I didn’t trust,†she said. “His dad loves him so much. He’s such a great dad.â€
The couple has known each other since they were 4 years old and been together since they were 14 years old.
“This isn’t right. Leo does not deserve to be in jail for this,†Dillon said, adding that she could not discuss specifics of the incident.
“He stepped into a hole. It was an accident.â€
Court documents say Mathis and his son were walking on West Gail Street in East Helena about 7:15 p.m. Wednesday when Mathis received a telephone call. He said he was distracted for a moment or two, and his son walked away from him and over a 4- to 5-foot-tall berm that had been constructed along Prickly Pear Creek during recent flooding.
The area between the berm and the creek is brushy, covered with Russian olive trees and other vegetation, and a steep bank runs down to the creek. When the incident happened, there was an area of slack water on the west bank. The documents note the creek was “visibly raging.â€
Mathis told officials that he saw his son standing upright in the slack water and decided to carry him across the main current of the creek to Kennedy Park on the east side of the creek.
“At some point, Mathis lost his footing in the main current and dropped his son,†Lewis and Clark County Attorney Leo Gallagher wrote in charging documents. “According to Mathis, he dived for his son several times before calling out for help.â€
A bystander heard his cries and called 9-1-1.
******
Dillon was at work when she received a call from Mathis. Dillon said she could tell Mathis was crying and she could hardly understand him, but she kept hearing him say, “I lost Little Man.â€
A crew with East Helena Fire Department located the boy about a half mile down the creek near Wylie Drive about 7:40 p.m. He was taken by ambulance to St. Peter’s Hospital.
Dillon said she was able to hold her son’s hand and run her fingers through his hair one last time before he was pronounced dead just before 9 p.m.
“When officers arrived on scene, Mathis appeared to be intoxicated and smelled of alcohol,†Gallagher added.
A breath sample put Mathis’ blood-alcohol content at 0.091 percent; the legal limit for drunk driving is 0.08 percent.
If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison.
Mathis remained in jail in lieu of $50,000 bond Monday evening.
Lewis and Clark County Sheriff Leo Dutton said an investigation into the death and the surrounding circumstances continues. Detectives are searching for personal property that may be in the area of Prickly Pear Creek. If anyone finds any items, Dutton encouraged them to call the Sheriff’s Office at 447-8293.
An anonymous citizen has set up an account at American Federal under the Leo Mathis Jr. Memorial Fund. You can donate at any American Federal branch. The account was opened specifically to help defray costs of funeral expenses for Leo Mathis Jr.
“The last thing I want to do is ask for money. All I really want to ask for is prayers,†Dillon said. “Everyone has been really supportive. Everyone’s been really nice.â€
Dillon, who was working two jobs, has taken some time off to grieve.
“I can’t even think about working right now,†she said.
Home / News / Montana & Regional /
Mom grieves for child lost in Helena creek
* Story
* Discussion
Mom grieves for child lost in Helena creek http://bloximages.chicago2.vip.town...32-001cc4c002e0/4e0a1813838ef.preview-300.jpg
The Missoulian
A memorial for 3-year old Leo Mathis has been erected near the spot on Prickly Pear Creek where he went into the water and died. Donations for Leo Mathis funeral are being accepted at any American Federal Bank in the state under the name Leo Mathis Jr. Memorial Fund. ELIZA WILEY/Independent Record
HELENA – Leslie Dillon is making arrangements to bury her 3-year-old boy.
She is also trying to get her boyfriend’s bail reduced so he can attend the services in Washington, from where the couple moved just days before the death of their son.
Her boyfriend is accused of negligent homicide in the little boy’s drowning death.
“It doesn’t seem real. I know he’s with God, but I feel he should be here with me,†Dillon said.
“He was here 3 1/2 years and then gone in two seconds,†she added.
Leo Eugene Mathis Jr. – affectionately known as “Little Man†– drowned in Prickly Pear Creek last Wednesday evening.
“I miss my little boy. He’s my world. My little boy is my life,†Dillon said.
Authorities arrested the boy’s father, Leo Eugene Mathis Sr., on Friday on a felony charge of negligent homicide.
Directly following their son’s death, the couple planned to return to Washington, where they would be surrounded – and comforted – by family. That was before Mathis, 26, was arrested.
“We’re going to stay here and fight this to the end,†she said of the charge.
Dillon said the allegations of negligence are false.
“I would never leave my son with someone I didn’t trust,†she said. “His dad loves him so much. He’s such a great dad.â€
The couple has known each other since they were 4 years old and been together since they were 14 years old.
“This isn’t right. Leo does not deserve to be in jail for this,†Dillon said, adding that she could not discuss specifics of the incident.
“He stepped into a hole. It was an accident.â€
Court documents say Mathis and his son were walking on West Gail Street in East Helena about 7:15 p.m. Wednesday when Mathis received a telephone call. He said he was distracted for a moment or two, and his son walked away from him and over a 4- to 5-foot-tall berm that had been constructed along Prickly Pear Creek during recent flooding.
The area between the berm and the creek is brushy, covered with Russian olive trees and other vegetation, and a steep bank runs down to the creek. When the incident happened, there was an area of slack water on the west bank. The documents note the creek was “visibly raging.â€
Mathis told officials that he saw his son standing upright in the slack water and decided to carry him across the main current of the creek to Kennedy Park on the east side of the creek.
“At some point, Mathis lost his footing in the main current and dropped his son,†Lewis and Clark County Attorney Leo Gallagher wrote in charging documents. “According to Mathis, he dived for his son several times before calling out for help.â€
A bystander heard his cries and called 9-1-1.
******
Dillon was at work when she received a call from Mathis. Dillon said she could tell Mathis was crying and she could hardly understand him, but she kept hearing him say, “I lost Little Man.â€
A crew with East Helena Fire Department located the boy about a half mile down the creek near Wylie Drive about 7:40 p.m. He was taken by ambulance to St. Peter’s Hospital.
Dillon said she was able to hold her son’s hand and run her fingers through his hair one last time before he was pronounced dead just before 9 p.m.
“When officers arrived on scene, Mathis appeared to be intoxicated and smelled of alcohol,†Gallagher added.
A breath sample put Mathis’ blood-alcohol content at 0.091 percent; the legal limit for drunk driving is 0.08 percent.
If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison.
Mathis remained in jail in lieu of $50,000 bond Monday evening.
Lewis and Clark County Sheriff Leo Dutton said an investigation into the death and the surrounding circumstances continues. Detectives are searching for personal property that may be in the area of Prickly Pear Creek. If anyone finds any items, Dutton encouraged them to call the Sheriff’s Office at 447-8293.
An anonymous citizen has set up an account at American Federal under the Leo Mathis Jr. Memorial Fund. You can donate at any American Federal branch. The account was opened specifically to help defray costs of funeral expenses for Leo Mathis Jr.
“The last thing I want to do is ask for money. All I really want to ask for is prayers,†Dillon said. “Everyone has been really supportive. Everyone’s been really nice.â€
Dillon, who was working two jobs, has taken some time off to grieve.
“I can’t even think about working right now,†she said.
