A boy hit by a car Sunday night in Johnston County is brain dead. The accident happened on Heath Road off Highway 96 near Four Oaks.
FOUR OAKS, N.C. -- A boy hit by a car Sunday night in Johnston County is brain dead. The accident happened on Heath Road off Highway 96 near Four Oaks.
Seven-year-old Marcus Lassiter and a friend were walking along the road when police say Pollo Rodriguez lost control of his car, hit Marcus, and ran off.
State Highway Patrol Troopers say Rodriguez was drunk and speeding. They say he had a blood-alcohol content of 0.21. The legal limit is 0.08. He's now in custody and charged with felony hit-and-run, felony assault, driving without a license, and DWI.
“He's smart, fun to be around. He [isn’t a] bad child,” said Erika Ruffin, Marcus’s cousin as family and friends gathered at the boy’s grandmother’s house near where he was hit Sunday night.
Milton Barnes is a family friend and saw the whole thing.
“I saw the car when it was coming down the road and I said 'Ya'll get out of the road!'”
Barnes said Marcus and another child moved out of the road and onto the grass. “Then he was like, 'Am I over far enough? Is this good?’ I was like, ‘Yeah it ain't gonna hit you. You're good.’ And when I said it, the car just hit him,” Barnes said.
Neighbors called 911 as Pollo Rodriguez ran away.
Pollo Hernandez Rodriguez
“Then he just got out of the car, looked at us and ran away like he did nothing,” said Ruffin.
“I think it's a coward's way, the way he took off,” said Jennifer Hamilton. She lives across the street from Marcus’ grandmother.
Marcus is the fourth child in our area in the last week to be hit by a car -- the second in Johnston County. The speed limit is 45 miles-per-hour on Heath Road and parents say it's too fast.
“The driving around here is horrific. They speed through here like it's a drag strip because it pretty much is a straight shot. I'm always telling my kids to stay out of the road,” said Hamilton.
So neighbors are taking action to make sure accidents like this one don't happen again. They're asking the NCDOT to reduce the speed limit and add a “Children at Play” sign on the street.
Highway Patrol Trooper David Finch was on the scene of the accident and agrees with neighbors. "With the amount of houses on that road I would say yes, it should be reduced,” said Finch.
Marcus' family just hopes this doesn't happen to other children and that justice is served for Rodriguez.
“I'm glad he's locked up,” said Ruffin.
Rodriguez is in the Johnston County jail under a $1 million bond. Police say if Marcus passes away, they will file more charges against him. He remains at Duke in critical condition.