Crime & Courts

NC woman pushed boy chasing a ball out of the way as driver hit and killed her, cops say

A woman rushed to save a boy who was chasing a ball in a Charlotte street when a driver hit and killed her Thursday night, police said.

The woman, 51-year-old Lydia Morales Garcia, pushed the boy out of the way before she was hit by a pickup truck driver in the 4300 block of Oakdale Road just before 8:30 p.m., near the Interstate 485 Inner Loop, according to a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department news release.

Medic took Garcia to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead, police said.

The driver was northbound when the boy ran across the road chasing a ball, police said,

Garcia “rushed toward the juvenile and pushed him out of the way before she was struck by the front, right corner of the Chevrolet” Silverado, according to the release.

The driver, who stayed at the scene, “was screened for impairment and determined not to be impaired,” according to CMPD. Speed is not believed to have contributed to the wreck, officers said.

The road was dark, and rain made it wet, police said.

No arrests have been made in the case.

Police called their investigation “active and ongoing” and asked witnesses to call to call CMPD Detective Justin Kupfer at 704-432-2169, extension 1, or Crime Stoppers at 704-334-1600.

Joe Marusak
The Charlotte Observer
Joe Marusak has been a reporter for The Charlotte Observer since 1989 covering the people, municipalities and major news events of the region, and was a news bureau editor for the paper. He currently reports on breaking news. Support my work with a digital subscription
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