A woman in her 30s was killed late Monday night after a vehicle struck her while she was crossing a street on Detroit's west side, and the driver did not stick around. Police say the crash happened in the area of Braile Street and West Chicago Street, west of Southfield Road and south of Interstate 96, and the vehicle involved left the scene before officers arrived.
Detroit police received a call about the crash at approximately 11:13 p.m. Monday, according to CBS News Detroit. Medics pronounced the woman dead at the scene.
Officers are now asking anyone with information about the crash to come forward. Tips can be submitted to the Detroit Police Department's Fatal Squad Unit, though the two tip-line numbers that have circulated for that unit differ: the CBS Detroit report lists 313-596-2260, while a separate account from Fox 2 Detroit lists 313-596-2280. Tips can also go to Crime Stoppers of Michigan at 800-SPEAKUP, or through Detroit Rewards TV, which accepts incident tips as well.
A Pattern Of Unsolved Hit-and-Runs In The Detroit Area
This is not the first fatal pedestrian hit-and-run to rattle the region. Fox 2 Detroit reported that a 56-year-old man was killed on a Sunday, Feb. 19, after being struck by a car while standing on the sidewalk near northbound I-75 Service Drive and Grand River in Detroit. In that case, the station reported, the suspect briefly re-entered the roadway before fleeing, last seen heading southbound on the I-75 Service Drive.
A similar case played out in nearby Redford Township, where, per Patch, a 69-year-old woman was fatally struck while crossing at Telegraph and Schoolcraft roads by a vehicle moving east on Schoolcraft. Patch reported that the driver did not stop and that police did not release a description of the car — leaving that case, like Monday's crash, without a known suspect.
What The Law Requires Of Drivers In A Crash
Under Michigan law, a driver who knows or has reason to believe they were involved in an accident on property open to public travel is required to immediately stop and remain at the scene until certain legal requirements are fulfilled. A driver may instead immediately report the crash to the nearest or most convenient police agency or officer if they have a reasonable and honest belief that remaining would cause further harm, according to Michigan Legislature records on MCL 257.617. Leaving the scene without doing so, as happened in Monday's crash, is what triggers the kind of fatal-crash manhunt now underway in Detroit.
No arrests have been announced, and police have not described the vehicle involved or disclosed whether the woman was in a marked crosswalk at the time she was struck. For now, investigators are relying on the public to help identify the driver who left her behind.
