WEST NEW YORK — A 7-year-old girl was killed on the way to school in West New York on Monday, Feb. 29 by what police said was a hit-and-run driver.
The car plowed into the girl and her mother around 8:20 a.m. as they were walking to school near 62nd and Van Buren streets. At least one witness told the media that someone got out of the car, saw what had happened, got back in, and sped away. Monday, officials vowed to find the driver of the black Chevy Tahoe, which was captured on video.
According to media accounts, video shows Shayla Pichardo, 7, holding hands with her mother Yelmy when they were hit. Her mother flew several yards. When she got up, she went back to hold her daughter, who lay on the ground.
Mayor Felix Roque told the media that he spoke with the family, and the mother would only say “My little girl!” in Spanish over and over.
Shayla was a first grader at School #1. Grief counselors were provided at the school.
Shayla was the only daughter of two Mexican immigrants. Her mother worked at the local nail salon on Bergenline Avenue. Her father, Javier, a construction laborer, was told at work of what happened, and rushed to the scene.
A nail salon worker told CBS, “She liked painting, to talk, she liked spelling.”
A family friend addressed the driver via ABC news, “You took the life of an angel…If I tell you about Sheyla, a smile comes to my face. That was her. She was the happiest baby.”