Driver Suspected In Fatal Hit-And-Run Crash Released From Custody
OXFORD TWP. (WWJ) - A 19-year-old Macomb Township man involved in a deadly hit and run accident has been released from the Oakland County Jail.
Police said Wednesday that the suspect has been released pending further investigation, which could take an additional six to seven weeks.
Investigators are awaiting toxicology reports and results of other forensic examinations of physical evidence before sending the case off to prosecutors, who will determine if any criminal charges will be filed in the death of 26-year-old Jordyn Brooke Puckett.
Puckett, of Orion Township, was killed as she walked along Drahner Road Monday night. Police say her body went undiscovered for hours; she was found dead around 4:20 a.m. Tuesday by a newspaper delivery driver.
The events leading to Puckett's death are still under investigation. According to police, Puckett had been with two friends that night. The friends told police that Puckett was a passenger in their vehicle when they became involved in verbal argument while driving on Drahner Road.
Around 9:30 p.m., the friends say Puckett exited the vehicle and started walking eastbound on Drahner. The friends say they tried to convince Puckett to get back in the car, but she refused. The friends drove off, leaving Puckett on foot.
The friends told police they later returned to the area looking for Puckett but she was nowhere to be found, so they assumed she had arrived home safely.
Police say the suspect struck Puckett at approximately 10 p.m. as she was walking down Drahner Road near Olive Street. At this time, it's not clear if Puckett was walking in the roadway or along the shoulder, but police say she was only a mile from where she exited her friend's vehicle. After the collision, which left parts from the suspect's 2015 Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck in the road, the suspect fled the scene.
The suspect eventually turned himself in to authorities. Police said his vehicle, which has been impounded, had damage consistent with evidence found at the scene.
Investigators are still searching for anyone who may have witnessed the accident. If you have any information, you are asked to call the Oakland County Sheriff's Office tip line at 1-888-TURN-1-IN.