A 16-year-old James City County resident was left with serious but non-life-threatening injuries Friday morning after being struck by a vehicle in a hit-and-run. Police believe they're looking for a late-1990s dark purple Volkswagen Golf that was last seen heading east on John Tyler Highway toward Route 199.
Pedestrian Rushed to Newport News Hospital
A pedestrian was struck on John Tyler Highway, according to The Virginian-Pilot. The teen was taken to Riverside Regional Hospital in Newport News for treatment after the hit-and-run.
The county's police crash team responded and combed the area, turning up multiple vehicle parts that investigators say have helped them zero in on the make and model of the car involved. Based on that evidence, the outlet reports that police believe the Volkswagen Golf sustained damage to its front driver-side headlight in the collision.
Tip Line Open as Search Continues
Police are asking anyone with information about the vehicle or the driver to call 757-603-6073.
Friday's crash adds to a pattern that has worried traffic-safety officials in the Historic Triangle in recent years. Pedestrian-involved crashes in James City County jumped from four during the first ten-and-a-half months of 2022 to 12 over the same stretch in 2023, per Virginia DMV data cited by The Triangle. That same reporting noted three serious pedestrian-involved crashes across the Historic Triangle in October 2023 alone, two of them in James City County, including one on Oct. 30 of that year in which a 22-year-old Newport News man was later charged with felony hit-and-run involving injury or death.
Virginia DMV Commissioner Gerald Lackey has pointed to visibility as a major factor behind the broader trend, noting that 61% of pedestrian crashes and 82% of pedestrian fatalities occurred during dark or dusk hours, according to the same Triangle report. Friday's crash on John Tyler Highway remains under investigation, and no additional details about the driver have been released.
