A teenage boy in Ohio who has been accused of murder is going to be charged as an adult, a judge has decided. Rayyon Hawkins was 16 when he stole a vehicle with two other boys, but what they didn’t know was that there was a little boy in the back seat. The little boy’s mother — seeing her SUV being stolen — jumped on the hood. Instead of stopping, however, Hawkins kept driving. The woman, Alexa Stakely, was thrown from the SUV and run over, and she died from her injuries. Now, Hawkins could spend the rest of his life in prison for his decision.
On September 11, 2025, a Franklin County grand jury indicted now 17-year-old Hawkins, The Columbus Dispatch reported. He was indicted on felony charges that include murder, involuntary manslaughter, robbery, theft, and failing to stop after an accident on a public roadway.
Even though Hawkins was a minor at the time of the killing, on September 3, Franklin County Juvenile Court Judge George Leach decided he should be tried as an adult.
According to statements made and court documents, the teen is accused of being the one driving Stakely’s stolen SUV.
The day of the judge’s decison, Stakely’s mother, Sandy Stakely, addressed Hawkins directly as she spoke, WBNS reported. “Do you remember this girl on the hood of your car? Screaming? This is Alexa. This is Alexa. She is a human and she benefitted the world,” the grief-stricken mother said.
Sandy Stakely continued to admonish Hawkins for the poor decision he made. She spoke not only for herself but for all of the people who loved her daughter.
“With you breaking the law and wanting to steal a car and killing Alexa, guess who has been punished? Her clients, her patients, her students, us,” she said, per WBNS.
In the early morning hours of July 11, 2024, Alexa Stakely was picking up her son from his babysitter, the Dispatch reported. The 29-year-old had a second job as a waitress to supplement her work as an elementary school speech pathologist. After putting her 6-year-old in the Honda C-RV, she realized she left something inside. The mother quickly ran inside to get it while leaving the vehicle running.
She was gone for less than a minute.
When she got outside, Hawkins, 19-year-old Gerald Dowling, and another 16-year-old boy were stealing her SUV. As any mother in that situation would have done, Alexa Stakely threw herself onto her vehicle to stop them. Except they didn’t stop. The woman fell from the hood and received a fatal head injury.
According to Assistant Franklin County Prosecutor Jeff Zezech, her son was awake at the time his mom was hit, the Dispatch reported. Thankfully, the little boy wasn’t hurt during the carjacking. Alexa Stakely’s vehicle was found abandoned in the same complex it was stolen from. Although it has not been directly addressed, it feels safe to assume the boy will carry that trauma for the rest of his life.
If Rayyon Hawkins is convicted on all charges, he could face life in prison without the possibility of parole for 15 years.
