Person Of Interest In Florence Hit-And-Run That Killed Toddler Turns Himself In
FLORENCE (CBSLA.com) — A man suspected of killing a little boy with his car near South Gate and then fleeing the scene has turned himself in to police.
Bell Gardens police say the 23-year-old man walked into the station at 3:21 p.m. Friday.
Investigators say he's a person of interest in an accident that happened around 7 p.m. Thursday in Florence. The man's car careened into 23-year-old Brianna Puryear as she was pushing her nephew, 4-year-old Evan Butterfield, in a stroller across the intersection of Holmes Avenue and Firestone Boulevard, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.
The driver's Toyota Venza sideswiped a silver Nissan Versa and then a black Chevy pickup, which were stopped at a red light.
The Toyota then careened into Puryear and the child.
"She just said they were walking across the street, inside the intersection, and here comes a car speeding. She thought they were going to stop, she didn't think of it, so she proceeded and they hit them," said Evan's mother, Roshonda.
The man driving the Toyota sped off, stopped and then fled on foot with a female passenger. The woman was later detained.
"Both the driver and the passenger tried to flee the scene, and we had some bystanders that helped to chase them," California Highway Patrol Lt. Doug Yun said.
The toddler was thrown more than 100 feet from where he was struck, officials said.
The toddler was rushed to Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in Harbor City, where he died of his injuries.
"He was so very brave, so smart, so intelligent, everybody loved him. He was a good kid," Butterfield said.
Puryear suffered moderate injuries that included a broken leg.
