Crash Pins Girl Under Car

by Allan Appel | July 13, 2007 12:26 AM | | Comments (9)

accident%20006.JPGFair Haveners are, unfortunately, accustomed to garden variety vehicular speeding along some of its wide streets. However, when the driver of a Honda raced through a stop sign Thursday afternoon at the intersection of Maltby and Chatham, just at the corner of pretty Chatham Square Park, the consequences were not only horrific, but criminal: A side-impact collision that ejected an 11-year old back-seat passenger from the struck car and pinned her under another vehicle. She’s now fighting for her life.

As if that weren’t bad enough, the driver who caused the accident struggled out and, according to witnesses, quickly removed the license plate from his smashed up vehicle and then fled the scene of the accident.

accident%20008.JPGAccording to area resident Gerda Genece, who was standing a block’s distance away in the park, at about 3:20 p.m. the driver of the Honda ran the stop sign and struck a Mazda passing through the intersection. The Mazda was being driven by a grandmother and her two granddaughters, one 8 years old sitting in the front seat, and an 11-year-old in the back. The impact spun the Mazda around, caused it to strike a parked Jeep, and then it spun around, ejecting the girl from the back seat.

“She was thrown under that Saturn there,” said Genece, “that was parked near the corner. We all ran over here, and people from here ran out, and everybody lifted the car and pulled the girl out. It’s so sad. She wasn’t moving. The ambulance arrived, and took her away. No, it doesn’t look good.”

What happened next compounded allegedly criminal driving with other alleged criminality. “We were too busy trying to get the girl out, ” said Genece, who then described what she’d heard from other neighbors: Namely, that the driver got out of the car, removed his license plate, and fled. “He went into that house there, #55, because the door was open. He told the people I don’t know what. He didn’t hurt them. But he disappeared.”

The police by then had arrived — uniformed officers, detectives in plainclothes, and Assistant Chief Stephanie Redding. The wide area of the intersection was cordoned off with yellow tape as the cops searched the car/ What they found made them treat the whole intersection as not only an accident but also a crime scene.

accident%20009.JPGAccording to Sgt. Vincent Anastasio (standing between Redding and shift commander Lieutenant M. Diaz), officers found in the abandoned car a large quantity of narcotics, a cell phone, and blood stains. “We’re setting up a full-fledged crime scene here. We have the cell phone; we have things to go on. We are in the midst of extensive processing of the evidence already.”

The police had a description already from several neighbors. According to Redding, the man who fled was a Latin male, about 5 feet 6 or 7 inches tall and wearing a blue tank top. “We have witnesses,” Redding said. “I believe we even have a nickname that one of the witnesses overheard. I’m hopeful we’ll find him.”

According to Anastasio they had already picked up someone in the area who matched the description, but it turned out not to be the driver.

Why would the driver take the trouble to pull off the plate? “Because the car is probably unregistered, and the plate would lead us to someone who would lead to him is my guess. I’ve seen this before. We’re collecting evidence, and there’s enough of it,” he said. “We’ll get him.”

accident%20007.JPGAlthough the grandmother and the 8- year-old in the front seat (their names were not revealed) were taken to the hospital, they were described as not seriously hurt. However, the girl thrown under the car was, in Anastasio’s phrase, “on the edge.” She was taken to Yale-New Haven Hospital where she was placed on a respirator.

“There are enough witnesses,” said Redding. “I’m hopeful.”

Neighbor Genece, who has been involved in area traffic-calming projects, said, “This is why we work so hard to make our neighborhood nice, and then this kind of thing happens.”

At press time, no further information was available about the status of the injured girl, or the progress of the investigation.

Police ask that anyone with information about the suspect, nicknamed “EJ,” call the toll-free TIPS hotline at 1-866-888-TIPS







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Comments

Posted by: charlie | July 13, 2007 10:13 AM

This is the fault of the police department for not enforcing traffic violations. I hope the family of the injured girl sues the police department and is able to gather statistics about how traffic laws are not enforced here. Meanwhile, nobody else cares, so there will be no protests in front of city hall over this or any of the other accidents or crimes going on. If you had just 5 or 10 families protesting out there, things will change. People could even call for speeders to get minimum 2 year prison sentences (which they should) and those who injure others in speeding accidents like these, minimum 20-30 year sentences with no parole. How about people carrying illegal guns get 50 years no parole. But they won't, which is the sad state of our democracy.

Posted by: charlie | July 13, 2007 10:19 AM

Oh, and this is vehicular murder. The perp should get a 400 year sentence with no parole and no perks. How about a bread and water diet.

Posted by: Jay [TypeKey Profile Page] | July 13, 2007 2:39 PM

None of the news stories mention that if this girl had been wearing a seat belt, she would not have been ejected from the car and her injuries would likely have been much less serious. The other 2 people in the car were not hurt as seriously, because they remained in the vehicle.
Why don't we use these accident stories to emphasize the importance of seat belt use?

Posted by: True New Havener | July 13, 2007 3:54 PM

This is such a tragedy. One thing that the story does show is how many good people there are in New Haven. Not only did Fair Haven residents quickly give lots of eyewitness accounts to the police, but 6 or 7 came immediately to the child's aid and literally lifted the car off of her.

Let's all give our hopes and prayers for her recovery.

Posted by: cedarhillresident [TypeKey Profile Page] | July 13, 2007 5:26 PM

Killing someone with a car is manslauter not murder Charlie. Great system we have ha! All you can hope for is that when the person is in jail you have enough pull to make it a living hell!! Don't get me going on this one! I was called to jury duty and they have never called me back again because I gave them my opinion on this!! Justice is not fear!

Posted by: Daniel Sumrall | July 13, 2007 5:58 PM

There is absolutely no reason to drive more than 25 MPH going anywhere in New Haven--in fact, I'm pretty sure the code of ordinances states that it is illegal to do so. There is absolutely no reason not to wear a seatbelt. In fact, isn't it a state law? So Charlie from above is right about one thing--why the hell aren't the police enforcing the law?

Running stop signs is dangerous and can kill people.

Running red lights and speeding through yellow lights is dangerous and can kill people.

Turning right on a red light when the sign says not to do so is dangerous and can kill people.

Going over the speed limit (LIMIT, look the word up) is dangerous and can kill people.

NOT OBEYING BASIC TRAFFIC LAWS IS DANGEROUS AND CAN KILL PEOPLE.

Time for everyone one to wake up. Drivers need to drive better. Police need to enforce traffic laws, all the time not just when they're bored.

And everyone needs to slow down and pay attention to the world around, the space around them whether they're driving or walking. There's no excuse for this and everyone is to blame (you, me, them--everyone).

Posted by: Tim B | July 16, 2007 10:40 PM


I live on Pine Street and some nights I think I am living on the edge of a Speedway. It is not only the residents that speed its the police dept, with cell phones glued to there ear. I'll go and protest in front of the Police Dept. On Union Ave.

Posted by: Edward_H | July 20, 2007 9:09 AM

New Haven Independent

Thanks for information concerning the donations. Also it appears the police have a suspect. Why is his name and likeness not being broadcast through out the media? I am sure many people want this "alleged" drug dealing low life found and brought to justice. I would understand this man fleeing under certain circumstances

http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/local/06/21/21murder.html

But the drugs found in the car lead me to think he fled in fear of law enforcement, not fear of mob "justice".

Posted by: Audrey Daniels | July 30, 2007 7:01 PM

What about donation ideas? I would like to raise money to help this young girl & her family through my business! This has got to be one of the most tough things a family can go through. I should know, my 10 month old great-nephew was murdered in 2003 by my neice's new boyfriend.

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