4-year-old victim of hit and run remains in critical condition, West Palm Beach police seek driver
Driver of white four-door sedan did not slow or stop after hitting little boy in crosswalk
Driver of white four-door sedan did not slow or stop after hitting little boy in crosswalk
Driver of white four-door sedan did not slow or stop after hitting little boy in crosswalk
A 4-year-old boy remains in critical condition after police said a driver hit him Sunday night on Okeechobee Boulevard near Rosemary Avenue. The driver subsequently left the scene.
Four boys ranging in age from a toddler to 15, along with an adult male, were crossing Okeechobee from the center median going south around 8 p.m. Sunday when police say the 4-year-old was hit by a car while he was in the crosswalk.
"Witnesses have said they saw the suspect vehicle going through the intersection at a high rate of speed when they struck the 4-year-old boy," said police spokesman Mike Jachles.
Jachles said the driver did not slow down or stop. He said he did not know if the boy was crossing with the light or if the car had the right of way; regardless, he said it doesn't matter.
"When somebody's in the road, you stop and let them cross," Jachles said.
Police are looking for a white, four-door sedan.
People who live in the nearby condos say speeders on Okeechobee have long been a problem.
"I've almost been hit four times," said City Place South Towers resident Jane Bloom.
Bloom said she wrote the police chief, the mayor and the city commissioners two months ago complaining that drivers go well above the 35 mph speed limit, but said only the chief responded, by ordering a one-time crackdown.
"Two of the commissioners wrote me back two months ago: ‘Well, we’re working on it.’ Well, does someone have to die? We have a 4-year-old boy who is now critically injured -- who knows what's going to happen," said Bloom.
WPBF 25 News Investigative Reporter Terri Parker asked Jachles what the department is doing to enforce the speed limit.
"The police department has a traffic enforcement unit that is very proactive and they're out and about in the city addressing traffic enforcement so we address areas of concern," said Jachles.
Police are urging witnesses or anyone with information to call detectives or Crimestoppers, where you can leave an anonymous tip and also be eligible for a reward.