A 5-year-old boy was struck by a car Tuesday in an apparent hit-and-run in Baltimore's Brooklyn neighborhood, and police say the driver didn't stick around to help. Officers responded to the area of Patapsco Avenue and 3rd Avenue in South Baltimore, where investigators say the boy was hit but, according to police, was not injured.
Police say the driver of a silver Honda Accord left the scene immediately after the crash, according to CBS Baltimore, which first reported the incident. No further details about the driver or the vehicle's direction of travel have been released, and it remains unclear whether the car has been located.
The scare lands on a stretch of South Baltimore that has already seen tragedy this year. Just one month earlier, a 46-year-old man was struck and killed in a fatal hit-and-run a few blocks away in the 400 block of East Patapsco Avenue, a case Hoodline previously reported remains part of the same corridor's troubling pattern.
What Drivers Are Legally Required to Do After a Crash
Under Maryland law, any driver involved in a collision is required to stop, remain at the scene, exchange contact and registration information, show a license if asked, and render reasonable assistance — including calling for emergency help — regardless of how minor the crash may seem, per Maryland Transportation Code § 20-104. Failing to do so carries real consequences that scale with the severity of the harm caused.
Leaving the scene of a crash that causes non-serious bodily injury is a misdemeanor that can bring up to a year in prison, a $3,000 fine, and 12 points on a driver's license, while fleeing a crash involving only property damage carries a lighter penalty of up to 60 days in jail, a $500 fine, and 8 points, according to FrizWoods LLC. Since the boy was reportedly not injured, the distinction between those two charges could shape whatever case investigators eventually build against the Accord's driver.
A Broader Pattern on Baltimore's Streets
This is not an isolated scare. The Brooklyn incident follows other recent close calls and tragedies involving young pedestrians in the Baltimore area, including a September crash in which an 11-year-old was critically injured crossing Harford Road, and a separate incident in which six juveniles were hurt near Dundalk High School — both cited in earlier Hoodline coverage of the region's youth pedestrian safety crisis.
The danger extends well beyond any single neighborhood. Maryland sees roughly 3,000 pedestrian crashes every year, and pedestrian collisions account for nearly 23% of all statewide traffic deaths even though they make up under 3% of total vehicle crashes, according to data from Zero Deaths Maryland. The same data shows that 92% of those pedestrian crashes happen in the Baltimore and Washington metro areas.
Locally, traffic fatalities and serious injuries affect people outside of vehicles, including pedestrians, cyclists, and scooter riders.
Baltimore's Vision Zero Plan
Baltimore's draft Vision Zero Action Plan sets a 2041 target for eliminating traffic deaths and serious injuries. Tuesday's crash was reported in the area of Patapsco Avenue and 3rd Avenue.
For now, investigators are still working to track down the driver who fled Tuesday's crash. Anyone with information is asked to contact Metro Crime Stoppers of Maryland at 1-866-7LOCKUP, where anonymous tips that lead to an arrest and charges can earn a cash reward of up to $2,000.
Whether the car's path was captured on any nearby cameras, and whether investigators have identified a suspect, remains unknown. For a neighborhood still mourning last month's fatal hit-and-run on the same stretch of Patapsco Avenue, Tuesday's close call is a stark reminder of how much is riding on the answer.
