Bronx Boy, 5, Fighting For Life After Brutal Hit-And-Run
NEW YORK (CBS 2) -- A young boy is struggling to survive Sunday night after a driver slammed into him as he played ball in front of his house.
As tears and outrage grow in the community, new video could help police find the driver responsible, reports CBS 2's Dave Carlin.
Five-year-old Joshua Saunders is still on life support, and the hit-and-run driver is still on the loose, but investigators have a strong lead.
Video shows the SUV police say hit Joshua as the young boy darted onto East 214th Street in front of his family's home.
"That car was going 60 miles an hour, no doubt about it. I saw it myself," neighbor Norman Morgan said.
Podcast
Morgan gave investigators the video, captured with his private home security system.
On the video, Joshua is seen on the sidewalk, then getting a ball off the street, about three minutes before the accident.
Then, the green Nissan Pathfinder enters the frame, with a driver whose image is on-screen but blurry.
Joshua went after the ball again and was struck, leaving him critically injured.
At a prayer vigil, the emotions were overwhelming for Joshua's sister, Arantxa. She was steps away when her little brother was hit, and the first to hold him as he struggled to survive.
At the vigil, she made a plea for the public to help, and for the driver to come forward.
"Why would you speed on a road, when you know little kids would be out there?" she said.
Later, Joshua's father, Ruel Saunders, gave CBS 2 an update on the boy's condition.
"His eyes closed, no movement," Ruel said. "I talk to him, I rub his face, I rub his foot, and I talk to him. I say, 'come on, Josh.'"
Ruel said Joshua has told him he wants to be a police officer when he grows up, so he told his son to get well fast and be brave, like a cop.
Police continue their search for the driver, who is branded a coward.
"Why are you speeding, and then think it enough not to stop and save the life of this child," community activist Tony Herbert said. "You should be arrested."
Joshua's father said it will be several more days before his little boy is taken off the respirator.
The boy's family said their hope grows every hour, as Joshua seems to get stronger.
The boy underwent surgery for head trauma and both of his legs are broken. He remains hospitalized at Jacobi Medical Center.
