Brother of West Des Moines Man Killed in Boat Crash Charged With Vehicular Homicide

Tony Starrett, the brother of a West Des Moines man killed in a Father’s Day boating accident on the Des Moines River, is being held in the Polk County Jail on $100,000 bond after authorities charged him Wednesday with vehicular homicide.

Starrett, 46, of Des Moines, previously had been charged with after the boat he was captaining crashed with one operated by Steven Mayo, 54, on June 17. Kelly Starrett, 49, was a passenger in his brother’s boat and died of blunt force trauma.

The Des Moines Register reported that Era Starrett, Tony Starrett’s wife, said in a June 18 interview that the family’s boat was drifting in a no-wake zone when it collided with the one operated by Mayo.

Mayo also was charged with boating while intoxicated. He had a blood alcohol content of .129 and Tony Starrett’s was .172, police said. Boaters are considered intoxicated if their blood alcohol level is greater than .08.

Kelly Starrett was a well-known musician throughout central Iowa who was remembered for having a and believing in second chances. Friends remembered  drummer and vocalist for bands like Alchemist, Mosh Libido and Roadshow at a last month.