Silver Lake Hit-And-Run Crash Victim Wants To Thank Good Samaritan Who Helped Him

SILVER LAKE (CBSLA.com) — A hit-and-run crash victim wants to thank the Good Samaritan who helped him when he was left for dead in Silver Lake.

Ellaryo Bolden was struck by a van Wednesday morning at Bellevue Avenue and N. Hoover Street.

Bolden, who was walking with a cane Thursday, says the moment his bike was struck, he thought his life might be over.

"There was a feeling that this is the hardest hit that I've had," said Bolden, who remembers lying on the street unable to move, but hearing a stranger's voice reassuring him.

"As he was doing that, he was pleading with this guy to not leave," Bolden said of the Good Samaritan.

Still, he says, the driver responsible only stopped briefly, then left.

"At the end of the day, it's very inhumane," he said.

Bolden says he called 911 himself, and the Good Samaritan, he identified as Chris Jackson, stuck around.

Bolden's wife, Liz Dwyer, used her cell phone to record Jackson explaining what he saw.

"I remember thinking like, 'This dude is seriously like an angel,' " Dwyer said. She says he appeared homeless, but even stayed to talk to police.

The couple says the hit-and-run happened just down the street from their home. They have been looking for Jackson, but say they can't find him.

"Can I take him to dinner or something to just say thank you?" Dwyer said.

They hope Jackson's words will help catch the man responsible and inspire others to do the right thing.

"He did a lot to help me so I would say 'Thank you.' And even though he may not have much, he's as much of a hero as anybody else," Bolden said.