An ongoing collection of unsolved hit-and-run cases, with a focus on car/pedestrian incidents, from across the country since Jan. ‘010. If you know something about any of these incidents, or one that I’ve missed, do the right thing and call the police, even anonymously.
3207. Simi Valley, Cal. Dec. 1. 21-year-old skateboarder injured when struck by a maroon Cadillac or Chrysler which fled the scene.
3208. Fairfax, Va. Nov. 30. 16-year-old male injured when struck by a minivan which fled the scene.
3209. North Bay Shore, NY. Dec. 1. 58-year-old woman injured when struck by an unidentified vehicle which fled the scene.
3210. Kileen, Texas. Dec. 2. 46-year-old man fatally struck by a white pickup truck which fled the scene.
3211. Houston, Texas. Dec. 2. Man injured when struck by a dark Chevy Monte Carlo which fled the scene.
3212-13. Joliet, Ill. Dec. 1. Couple walking their dog struck by a small grey or silver car which fled the scene; 68-year-old man killed, same-aged wife injured.
3214. Green Brook, NJ. Dec. 3. Elderly woman injured when struck by a blue Toyota Prius which fled the scene.
3215. San Angelo, Texas. Dec. 3. Bicyclist injured when struck by a 90s or 00s dark-green Dodge Durango which fled the scene.
3216. Gladstone, Mich. Dec. 4. 25-year-old man injured when struck by a Ford pickup, possibly diesel, which fled the scene.
3217. Santa Ana, Cal. Dec. 4. 7-year-old girl severely injured when struck and dragged by a Toyota 4-Runner which fled the scene.
3218. Ketchum, Idaho. Nov. 30. 39-year-old man injured when struck by a 2003 Toyota Tundra with California plates which fled the scene.
3219. Dayton, Ohio. Dec. 4. Teenage boy injured when struck by a baby blue Dodge Ram which fled the scene.
3220-21. Gaithersburg, Md. Dec. 3. 34-year-old man killed and 34-year-old brother injured when struck by a black Honda Civic which fled the scene.
Related stories:
Longform hit-and-run investigative piece from L.A. Weekly…
There is no LAPD task force or organized city effort to address the problem, yet the numbers are mind-boggling. About 20,000 hit-and-run crashes, from fender benders to multiple fatalities, are recorded by the Los Angeles Police Department each year.
That’s huge, even in a city of 3.8 million people. In the United States, 11 percent of vehicle collisions are hit-and-runs. But in Los Angeles, L.A. Weekly has learned, an incredible 48 percent of crashes were hit-and-runs in 2009, the most recent year for which complete statistics are available. According to data collected by the state, some 4,000 hit-and-run crashes a year inside L.A. city limits, including cases handled by LAPD, California Highway Patrol and the L.A. County Sheriff, resulted in injury and/or death. Of those, according to a federal study, about 100 pedestrians died; the number of motorists and bicyclists who die would push that toll even higher.
“It’s like a war zone out there,” says Jeri Dye Lynch of Van Nuys, whose son, 16-year-old cross-country star Conor Lynch, was killed by a hit-and-run driver two years ago while jogging in the San Fernando Valley. “But there’s nobody there to help. They just accept it as part of living in an urban environment.”
As punishment for Conor Lynch’s death, the 18-year-old hit-and-run driver did no jail time, largely because she eventually turned herself in.
Shocking Philadelphia hit-and-run video…
Shocking Philadelphia hit-and-run police report…
And I quote (I)…
The Lewis County Sheriff’s Department is investigating a hit and run accident involving an Amish buggy.
And I quote (II)…
Oklahoma City police have a suspect in a hit-and-run wreck involving a school bus last week.
No arrest has been made, and charges have not been filed, so police have not released the suspect’s name, Master Sgt. Gary Knight said.
And I quote (III)…
He was a recovering drug addict.
She is a recent college graduate with a budding career.
A young man and woman, each 23, entering what should have been an exciting, vibrant time in their lives, though coming at it from different directions.
They didn’t know each other, but their disparate lives intersected on a dark stretch of road. A chance meeting — an accident — ended Alex Trabert’s life and likely will change Morgan Mannix’s forever.
Police said Mannix was driving south in the 7400 block of North Shadeland Avenue in the early morning hours of Nov. 24. They believe she drifted off the road. Police said she struck Trabert, who was on foot.
Mannix stopped and looked around. But she didn’t see anything or anyone, she told police, so she left.
Now, the former Lawrence Central High School cheerleader and gymnast — with no criminal history — is facing a felony charge that could send her to prison for years. And the avid bike rider and skateboarder who had just started turning his life around was buried Friday morning.
And I quote (IV)…
Police say Christopher R. Coleman, 20, was struck by two vehicles on Hopkins Road around 5:30 p.m. Police say a Pontiac first hit Coleman, who was in the middle of the road near Little Creek Lane. Then, a brown truck struck him right after. The driver of the Pontiac car stayed at the scene, while the truck driver took off.
Coleman was pronounced dead at the scene. Blood-soaked rags, a shoe, a watch and a jacket were left strewn on the street.
And I quote (V)…
An off-duty Chicago Police officer stopped a “habitual hit-and-run” driver who tried to flee after crashing into a CTA bus on the Northwest Side onTuesday.
Officer Zoran Miucin, an 18-year police veteran assigned to the Harrison District on the West Side, saw the crash about 2:45 p.m. near Diversey and California, police News Affairs said.
And I quote (VI)…
State Rep. Ayala is no stranger to the courthouse. Just two weeks ago she was there to face charges of evading responsibility, failure to obey a traffic signal and failure to renew her vehicle’s registration in connection with a hit-and-run crash in August.
When she appeared before Superior Court Judge Earl Richards on the most recent charge, she stood chewing gum as the judge reviewed the litany of things she can no longer do under a protective order he was imposing on her.
Ayala momentarily stopped her gum chewing to answer “yes” when Richards asked her if she understood his order.
And I quote (VII)…
He then took his truck to a repair shop and said gang members had vandalized it, according to police reports. Alvarez-Solis was arrested April 12 when a former employee of the shop called police to relay that a suspicious vehicle was at the business.
And I quote (VIII)…
The Florida Highway Patrol charged an off-duty Sanford Police officer in a hit-and-run crash early Sunday morning, according to a statement issued by the police department.
A report from FHP said Officer Stephen Santiago was traveling southbound in a vehicle on U.S. 17-92 when he sideswiped another car while trying to change lanes. According to officials he failed to stop at the scene of the crash.
Caught, convicted, court appearance or car-on-car in … Port Allen, La.; Lebanon, Maine; Pleasantville, NJ; Oakland, Cal.; Willows, Cal.; Novato, Cal.; Tucson, Ariz.; North Providence, RI; North Babylon, NY; Madison Heights, Mich.; North Adams, Mass.
More hit-and-run stories, including every volume of Hit-and-Run America (in reverse order), are accessible from this linked page. (The full Volume-by-Volume list will appear sporadically from now on.)