A quiet Jeannette neighborhood is on edge after a 3-year-old boy was hit in a hit-and-run earlier this week, leaving his family desperate to know who was behind the wheel. Police in the Westmoreland County city have opened an investigation while relatives and neighbors push for anyone with even a sliver of information to step forward.
The small city has rallied around the family as investigators work to pinpoint the vehicle and driver involved. Neighbors are swapping camera clips, double-checking doorbell systems, and comparing notes while officers go door to door.
As reported by CBS News Pittsburgh, KDKA-TV's Chris DeRose spoke with relatives who say they are pleading with the public to share any home-camera footage or eyewitness accounts from around the time of the crash. Police told the station that detectives are canvassing the area and tracking down tips as they work to identify the striking vehicle and the person who was driving it.
How Common Are Hit-and-Runs
Hit-and-run crashes are not rare one-off events. Nationally, they account for a substantial slice of pedestrian deaths. Nearly one in four pedestrians killed in 2024 were struck by drivers who left the scene, according to the federal traffic safety brief from NHTSA. The same report notes that thousands of pedestrians are injured in crashes each year.
Why Children Are Especially Vulnerable
Children show up in those statistics more often than many parents might assume. In 2024, about 17 percent of motor vehicle crash deaths among kids under 13 involved children who were walking as pedestrians, and child crash deaths tend to climb in the summer months when kids are outside more. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety tracks those child fatality trends over time, offering context for why community vigilance around speeding, visibility, and safe driving still matters on neighborhood blocks.
Family, Neighbors Plead for Footage and Tips
In KDKA's coverage, anguished relatives look straight into the camera and ask neighbors to check any doorbell or security systems for video from the minutes surrounding the crash. Even short clips that might show a vehicle passing by, or a partial description of a car, could help investigators narrow things down.
The station reports that police are still waiting for clear, actionable leads. Officers have stressed that small details matter and that people should not assume their footage or observations are too minor to share. CBS News Pittsburgh reviewed those family appeals and noted the ongoing search for witnesses.
How to Help
Anyone with information, photos, or video connected to the incident is urged to contact the City of Jeannette Police Department. The department's non-emergency line is listed as 724-527-4013.
Officials say preserving original footage with timestamps and writing down the exact time you saw or heard anything unusual can make a real difference for detectives trying to reconstruct what happened. Local public safety directories list the department's contact information for tips and follow-up questions, and the City of Jeannette Police Department includes that contact information in its public listings.
