JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A 13-year-old boy was transported to a hospital with critical injuries after he was hit by an SUV Wednesday morning in the Grand Park area.
The boy’s stepmother identified the 13-year-old as Kameron Turner.
JSO said the boy was walking to school with his 12-year-old brother when he was struck at the intersection of Division Street and Kings Road. The crash was initially reported around 8:30 a.m.
UF Health told News4JAX on Thursday that Turner remains in critical condition.
JSO said the driver, who is around 60 years old, stopped and is cooperating with investigators. JSO said there were no indicators of impairment.
Detectives are now trying to determine if speed was a factor.
JSO said the teens were on the south side of the road moving northbound, cut across the parking lot of a church and were not in the crosswalk.
“It hits home. It is the saddest with the youngest and most vulnerable. The older and younger pedestrians are very vulnerable,” Sgt. Robert Hungerford said. “It is tragic. If you could just rewind time and fix it, everybody would. It is just a sad thing to see, especially a juvenile injured.”
JSO said one of the brothers indicated that he thought the driver was on the phone at the time of the crash, but JSO added that drivers are allowed to use a phone, but there are regulations as to how it is used when behind the wheel, and JSO is investigating that claim.
Last year, FHP reported there were 10,278 pedestrian crashes in Florida. Of those, 779 were fatal.
Turner’s family created a GoFundMe to help raise funds for medical expenses.