Nine years after a speeding driver tore through a West Side block and took her daughter’s life, Evelyn Modacure is still demanding answers. Her daughter, 27-year-old Katina Runnels, was struck in the 4500 block of West Washington Boulevard on July 2, 2017, and the driver fled. The case remains open and unsolved. Modacure, who now helps raise Runnels’ three children, says she will keep pressing investigators until she gets some measure of closure.
Runnels was standing next to a parked vehicle just after midnight when a red car heading west slammed into her. She was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital and pronounced dead shortly afterward; an autopsy later showed. At the time, police treated the crash as a hit-and-run after witnesses saw the red vehicle speed off. Chicago Sun-Times reported the details in its initial coverage of the collision.
Family Keeps Her Name Visible
Inside Modacure’s home, her daughter’s ashes rest in a blue-lit cabinet, a permanent reminder that the story is not over. She carries Runnels’ name on T-shirts, posters, and signs at community events so the case does not slip from public memory. Modacure recalled hearing the crash from a block away and then getting a final, cut-short call from Katina: “Mama, I'm okay, I'm on my way back to you,” she said, repeating the words she shared in a profile published July 2, 2026. As reported by ABC7 Chicago, she says she keeps calling investigators because she cannot accept watching the file quietly go cold.
Why Investigators Struggle
Attorneys who work on fatal traffic cases say the odds are stacked against families waiting on justice in hit-and-run investigations. “For cases involving death or great bodily harm, you're talking about a clearance rate that's a little above 9%,” attorney Lance Northcutt told ABC7 Chicago, blaming what he sees as chronic under-resourcing of the Chicago Police Department’s crash investigators. Northcutt, a partner and former Cook County prosecutor, represents injured families and has written about pedestrian and hit-and-run litigation. Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard details his experience with deadly-accident cases.
A Wider Street-Safety Problem
Experts and city data reviewers say Runnels’ death is part of a larger traffic-safety crisis that Vision Zero initiatives have not yet solved. A review of city collision records found that Chicago has seen hundreds of traffic deaths in recent years, along with more than 23,000 crash injuries in 2023, highlighting why hit-and-run and pedestrian cases keep piling up for investigators. Chicago Sun-Times analyzed the trend and underlying city data.
Who To Contact
Modacure says she has no plans to stop calling, emailing, and asking questions about her daughter’s case, and Chicago police continue to ask the public for help on unsolved hit-and-runs. Anyone with information about this crash or similar cases is urged to contact the Chicago Police Department Major Accidents unit at (312) 745-4521 or submit an anonymous tip at CPDTIP.com, according to local coverage. FOX 32 Chicago has outlined how residents can share tips with investigators.
