Man seriously injured by driver fleeing police shares story of recovery
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Battered, bruised, and months of recovery ahead. After he was seriously injured by a driver fleeing from police, a hit-and-run victim is sharing his story of recovery.
Elias Martinez doesn't remember much about that night when a driver fleeing North Riverside police hit him from behind.
Just by looking at Elias, it's clear he's in pain. His left leg was broken in three places, and his skull was fractured.
He's finally back home after five weeks in the hospital and rehabilitation.
"They showed me how the walk, little by little, like a baby," he said.
On Sept. 4, Elias, his wife Maria, and their 5-year-old daughter were walking in Berwyn near North Riverside Mall, when a carjacking suspect fleeing from North Riverside police jumped the curb and hit him.
The driver ditched his car and ran off. Police said he carjacked someone in a minivan blocks away. The crash left Martinez in the hospital for days, unable to speak.
"God gave me another chance to stay here with my family," he said.
The Martinez family is grateful to have him around, but many questions remain about that night.
"My understanding is that he was running away from the police. He could have easily prevented this," said his son, Jesus.
"This is not an accident, this is just wrong," Elias said.
The suspect who caused the crash was on the run until last week, when the Martinez family got a call from police.
"They captured the person who did it," Jesus said.
Yet the family is now facing financial hardship. Friends started a GoFundMe since Martinez can't work and medical bills are mounting.
"I can't pull money. I'm going to lose everything," Elias said.
As Martinez slowly recovers, his family is worried, but reflecting on what doctors told them.
"Based on how he got hit from the back … most of people don't survive or walk again," Jesus said.
North Riverside police declined to comment about the case on Tuesday.
Police in Berwyn, where the crash and carjacking happened, said with the help of U.S. Marshals, they arrested Terrance Whitely, of Chicago, who has been charged with six felonies in the crash.
