Citrus Heights Teen On Skateboard Seriously Injured In Hit-And-Run Crash
CITRUS HEIGHTS (CBS13) – The parents of a Del Campo High School student are asking the driver of a hit-and-run to come forward.
"To take a whole mirror off of a car, you have to be traveling pretty fast," said John Bartush near the high school.
Bartush doesn't understand how the driver could've hit his 16-year-old son and kept going.
"You can't not notice when you're driving down the street and hit something that hard," he said.
William Bartush was skateboarding to the big playoff game against East Union when a truck or an SUV struck him from behind, landing him in the ICU.
"It's emotional to see your kid in pain and you can't really do anything about it," his father said.
Neighbors along Dewey Drive believe speed is a major issue.
"It's only 25, but people go 50 to 60 miles out here," said Elizabeth Holt who lives a house down from where the teen was struck.
It was 6:30 p.m. and it's possible the driver didn't see Will on the skate board.
"If it was an accident, hitting him, I understand that accidents happen, but as soon as you leave it becomes a crime," his father said.
Will had surgery and suffered a fractured rib and a punctured lung.
Holt said just the other day, a driver hit and killed a dog and never stopped. Now they're searching through their surveillance video to help out Will's family.
"They need to take responsibility for their own actions. Don't be in a rush," she said.
Will's father is grateful it wasn't any worse, but doesn't want other families to go through this.
"With all of the texting that goes on now a days, you never know if someone was texting or if alcohol was involved. I'd like to hope it was just an accident," he said.
The passenger side mirror was found at the scene by Will's family and handed over to California Highway Patrol. It belongs to a 2000's model Ford truck or SUV.
If you have any information, call police.