A 12-year-old girl was killed and a pregnant woman seriously injured in a hit-and-run in Maryland, police say.
On the night of March 22 at around 9:21 p.m., police responded to a hit-and-run in Catonsville, about 8 miles outside of Baltimore, the Baltimore County Police Department said in a statement on Saturday, March 23.
The suspect vehicle struck the two victims, both pedestrians, as they were crossing the road. The driver made no attempt to stop after hitting the two pedestrians and kept driving in a southerly direction on North Rolling Road, the police said.
#BCoPD is on scene of hit & run crash, N. Rolling Rd/Johnnycake Rd, adult fem ped & Juv fem ped struck, both w/life-threatening injuries. More info as it becomes available. ^jzp
— Baltimore County Police Department (@BaltCoPolice) March 23, 2019
The 12-year-old girl, later identified as Maria Popal, was transported to Sinai Hospital where she was pronounced dead, the statement read.
Popal’s 32-year-old pregnant aunt, the other hit-and-run victim, was taken to a hospital with life-threatening injuries, police reported.
By Saturday morning, she was in a stable condition. However, the condition of her pregnancy is unknown at this time, police said.
The search is on for the driver of a Honda Accord with damage to its front passenger side#Catonsville #Maryland #HitAndRun #NorthRollingRoad #MariaPopal #Murder #SuspectSought #RewardOffered https://t.co/dMyvCTss5f
— Richard D. Webster (@rdwebster) March 24, 2019
Authorities are searching for the suspect’s car, described as an older model Honda Accord, possibly from 1990 or 1991, police said. The Accord should have damage to the front passenger side, police added.
Anyone who may have witnessed the crash or has any information is asked to call authorities at 410-307-2020.
#BCoPD is searching for a 90′-91′ Honda Accord with front passenger side damage, poss darker colored, that struck 2 peds on N. Rolling Rd last night, critically injuring a pregnant woman & killing a 12 yr old girl. Call 410-307-2020 w/info Details: https://t.co/PUjtaHJ1sf ^JzP
— Baltimore County Police Department (@BaltCoPolice) March 23, 2019
A Similar Case
Earlier this year on Feb. 5, a 12-year-old girl was killed in a hit-and-run in Colorado, Aurora Police said in a statement.
The girl was identified as Jenna Soloman. According to a police statement, Soloman was crossing East Iliff Ave. in Aurora, Colorado, when a pickup truck hit her.
Soloman was on her way to school and was not using the signaled intersection to cross the road, police said.
#TrafficAlert W/B E. Iliff Ave has been closed at S. Vaughn Way while officers investigate a vehicle vs pedestrian crash. Avoid this area. Use either Parker Rd or Mississippi Ave to get onto I-225. Updates here. pic.twitter.com/TBZD5R3WEc
— Aurora Police Dept (@AuroraPD) February 5, 2019
The driver and other witnesses immediately stopped to help and call 911. Soloman was transported to a local hospital with critical injuries. Despite receiving medical aid, she was later pronounced dead.
An autopsy performed found that Soloman died of injuries sustained from the accident.
Police said there was no evidence of speed or other factors on the part of the driver that contributed to the cause of the crash, according to the statement. Police added in the statement that the driver was cooperative and was “understandably upset about this tragic accident.”
12-year-old girl fatally struck by driver while walking to school in Aurora identified https://t.co/57NYEhx5D7
— The Denver Post (@denverpost) February 13, 2019
After Soloman’s death, a local teen started a campaign for a crosswalk she believes will help save lives, reported KDVR.
Jocelyn Lucio started a petition asking for a new crosswalk at the intersection where Soloman had been hit.
Shelby Lucio, Jocelyn Lucio’s mother, said she heard the crash and the ensuing screams from the accident.
Teen petitions for crosswalk where 12-year-old hit, killed last week https://t.co/CT6eTFh8uF pic.twitter.com/vUqsT9r6B2
— FOX31 Denver KDVR (@KDVR) February 12, 2019
“It breaks my heart because I have a 17-year-old daughter. I couldn’t imagine my life without her,” Shelby told Problem Solvers.
Many children use the intersection as the nearest crosswalks are farther down the street, which had Jocelyn Lucio worried.
“And these kids they just run back and forth and they don’t know how to look out for themselves all the time,” she said.
She’s hoping a crosswalk can be implemented before tragedy strikes again.
“Because there’s so many kids that live in this apartment complex, it’s terrible to know that a 12-year-old girl died because of that,” she said.
