According to reports, a Georgia hit-and run victim is asking the public’s assistance in finding the man responsible for hitting her with his vehicle.
Jacaranda Gutierrez was crossing the street near Centennial Olympic Park just before noon on the 27th of June when she was struck. According to 11 Alive.
“I looked up to see if I still had time to cross the street. I still had about five seconds,”She spoke to the outlet.
“It looked like the car was going to turn, but I thought he would turn behind me and on his lane,”She described it to the outlet.
Security surveillance videoGutierrez was shown to have the right of way, and was struck by the car.
Video shows the suspect getting out to check on her and walking her to the sidewalk before getting back into his vehicle and driving away.
According to 11 Alive, Gutierrez, who was 20 at the time, said this incident changed her life forever.
“I look back — next thing you know, he’s going, and then I’m just on top of his car. I slid off his hood after he pressed the breaks. That was really painful.”
According to the outlet two witnesses were walking in front Gutierrez and called 911.
Gutierrez thinks the man might have been paying more attention to these two women than he should, which may have led to the accident, according 11 Alive.
Gutierrez’s attorney Antonio Molina shared that the video showed the driver was turning into the wrong lane, according to the outlet.
“How do you not notice she’s right in front of you and you keep going straight without even attempting to hit the breaks?”He asked.
“Had he made his turn behind her, where he was supposed to turn into, he would’ve never hit her,”He said. “It’s not like he was going 60 mph. He can clearly see – based on the video – that he had enough time to perceive where she was at.
Gutierrez was taken to Atlanta Medical Center and received X-rays and scans to see the extent of her injuries.
“They claimed that everything was okay.” she said to the outlet.
“I didn’t feel okay. Mentally.”
Gutierrez said she was on her way to get a new passport to attend her father’s funeral in Mexico. He had died four days prior but she was unable to attend due to her injuries.
“My head is asking me why everything is happening this way. My side was in such severe pain.” she said.
Gutierrez says she is still haunted by those moments and sought out Molina for help after months of pain and trouble sleeping.
“It’s difficult to see this tape and understand the actions.” Molina said to 11 Alive.
“Now, I’m really, really scared.” she told 11Alive. “Almost paranoid. To the point that I look each direction more than twice to cross the street.”
Four months later the man who hit her still hasn’t been found, but Molina says the video shows a clear view of the car’s make: a black Nissan Kicks, 2018 to 2020 model, according to the outlet.
“We want justice.” he added. “We don’t wish to pursue the wrong person.”
Molina told the outlet that he hopes they find the witnesses that called 911 for Gutierrez, believing one of them might have more information that could help them get closer to the man driving the car.
Gutierrez told the outlet she hopes the man comes forward to give an apology and so he can help with hospital bills.
“I don’t want to just put him in jail — he did help me get across the street — if he could just come forward and we could get this out of the way… You know maybe an apology or anything, an apology could go a long way.”
Molina shares his call for assistance in the situation with the outlet saying, “This happened in the middle of the day, so we know there were people that observed this or maybe even heard of this, or were there present,”
“It’s in a busy area, a well-traveled area. We’re calling on the community: if you saw this, please reach out to us.”
Anyone with information or witnesses to the accident is asked to contact Molina’s office at (770)685-7561.