Police Commissioner's son killed during schoolies week
The son of South Australia's police commissioner has tragically died after an alleged hit and run.
Charlie Stevens, 18, was celebrating the end of high school when he was run down on Friday evening in Goolwa, about 90km southeast of Adelaide.
Charlie sustained irreversible brain damage from the incident, and died 24 hours later in hospital surrounded by his family.
Police said the 18-year-old driver, Dhirren Randhawa, failed to stop at the scene but was found nearby.
Randhawa has been charged with causing death by dangerous driving, aggravated driving without due care, leaving the scene of a crash after causing death and failing to truly answer questions.
In a statement, Commissioner Grant Stevens and his wife Emma thanked police, first responders and other emergency services workers who attended the incident.
“The Stevens family also wish to thank the wider community for their support during this difficult time in particular the family acknowledge the dedicated staff at the Flinders Medical Centre for their care and support of Charlie and his family and friends,” they said.
Tributes have poured in for the teenager, as his older brother Tom called Charlie his "best mate, biggest rival and number one fan".
"It breaks my heart (that) my days of being a big brother have come to an end," he said.
SA Police Deputy Commissioner Linda Williams became emotional when sharing speaking about the incident, as she told reporters Charlie was an apprentice carpenter who had recently finished school and as excited about the next stage of his life.
“[Commissioner Stevens] is with his family who are waiting for other family members from interstate to arrive,” the deputy commissioner said.
“As you can imagine, this is a very difficult statement for me to make."
“We always talk about this happening to other people but the reality is it can happen to anyone.”
Image credits: SA Police