Police Say Hit-and-Run Driver Killed Jamie Freeman from Suffolk

I was appalled to read about not one but two fatal accidents over the weekend in Hampton Roads that police say were caused by hit-and-run drivers.

The first accident occurred on Friday evening. Police say a driver fled the scene of an accident that claimed the life of Jamie Freeman of Suffolk, in Chesapeake. Ms. Freeman was just 29. A report on ABC 13 described what a special person she was.

“You could just be around her and just, her presence made you feel special,” Freeman’s nephew Chris Parker, told the channel. Ms. Freeman’s life was tragically cut short and my condolences go out to her family.

She died in a wreck on Portsmouth Boulevard near Taylor Road around 5 p.m. Friday. It’s a busy stretch of road near Chesapeake Square Mall that sees many accidents, although fatalities are rare.

Witnesses told police a Mercedes and Ford SUV were traveling east in the 4200 block of Portsmouth around 5:50 p.m. The Mercedes rear ended the Ford, pushing the SUV into oncoming traffic and causing a collision with a westbound Jeep Cherokee.

Chesapeake police spokeswoman Kelly O’Sullivan said Ms. Freeman was a passenger in the Ford. She was transported to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, where she later died.

Police said the at-fault driver left the accident scene. Portsmouth police tracked her down to the 400 block of Robin Road. A 72-year-old suspect from Portsmouth, was charged with DUI and hit and run. Additional charges are pending, according to police. The woman is being held in the Chesapeake City Jail without bond.

There is never an excuse for leaving the scene of an accident. There is also never an excuse for driving above the DUI limit. Our Chesapeake injury lawyers never defend drunk drivers. We sue them and their insurance companies in wrongful death cases. In some cases DUI drivers are hit with additional damages known as punitive damages which aim to punish them.

In Newport News police are looking a driver who struck and killed a 60-year-old Hampton woman along Jefferson Avenue early Sunday morning. Jefferson Avenue is notorious for pedestrian accidents and injuries and yet drivers continue to knock down walkers.

Police say Sandra E. Balance was walking in the road in the 9700 block of Jefferson Avenue just after 1 a.m. when she was hit by a car, which continued heading north on Jefferson Ave.

She was declared dead at the scene. It’s unclear why the victim was walking in the highway but friends say snow on the sidewalks and in the parking lots made it difficult for pedestrians. One local resident said it was safer on the medians than on the slippery sidewalks.

Drivers who leave an accident scene are callous and often have something to hide such as the fact they are driving drunk. Drivers have a duty to look out for pedestrians and to stop at accident scenes.

If you have lost a loved one due to the actions of a hit-and-run driver, or if you have been injured, you should call Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers for a free consultation at 757.455.0077.