The driver charged with striking the son of Precinct 3 Commissioner James Noack and fleeing the scene on October 10 was sentenced to prison Tuesday in the 221st District Court in Conroe. Billy Dale Barnett, Jr., 25, of Magnolia pleaded guilty to the felony offense of Failure to Stop and Render Aid, and was sentences to four years in prison. The range of punishment for that offense was one to five years.
Barnett was a Crime Stoppers “Featured Felon” two weeks prior to striking the Commissioner’s 13-year-old son with his pickup. He was still on the run when he added to his troubles that fateful Friday. The Noack’s were parked on the side of Champions Ridge Road in Magnolia with their flashers activated, along with another vehicle parked behind them with flashers activated. Noack’s son got out of his father’s vehicle to open a family member’s gate. Barnett drove around the two stopped vehicles and struck the boy, throwing him into a rocky ditch nearby. Barnett stopped briefly, and his female passenger jumped out and started toward the boy, but he yelled at her to get back into the truck and she complied. Barnett then sped away.
The younger Noack was scratched and bruised, but medics checked him on the scene and he was not transported. Fortunately, Commissioner Noack got the truck’s license plate number and gave it to DPS Trooper Will Frederick who took the report and conducted the on-scene investigation.
By the next day, the truck was linked to Barnett and his photo was posted online with other information and spread like wildfire through news and social media. Around 2 p.m. Sunday, members of the Montgomery County Precinct 3 and Precinct 4 Constable’s Offices met to launch their own investigation, assisted by US Marshals.
They checked out leads at locations around Magnolia that led to Harris County. Six stops later, and within hours of beginning their search, they found Barnett. He was visiting a friend when Montgomery County Precinct 4 Deputy Constables arrived. Barnett was arrested without incident.
Commissioner Noack was very pleased and relieved to learn the news of Barnett’s arrest and expressed his and his family’s gratitude to the law enforcement agencies involved, saying his whole family would sleep better knowing Barnett was in custody.
“I’m proud of how our local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies worked together,” Noack said. “He was hunted down like the animal he is.”
Precinct 4 Constable Kenneth “Rowdy” Hayden and Precinct 3 Constable Ryan Gable, who are also fathers, agreed that anyone who could hit a child and leave him lying in a ditch needed to be taken off the streets.
Upon learning of the sentence, Commissioner Noack had positive words for those involved in bringing Barnett to justice.
“I’m proud of how quickly law enforcement caught him, and how diligent the DA’s Office was in their prosecution,” Noack said. “The wheels of justice moved swiftly and we are pleased with the results.”
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