Mother and Daughter Struck In Hit-And-Run
Last year was San Francisco’s deadliest for pedestrians since 2007. 24 people died in roadway incidents throughout the city, including a family of four struck and killed near West Portal. Now, not yet six months into 2025, six pedestrians have lost their lives on San Francisco streets. Will this year’s carnage approach the previous year’s? What is City Hall doing to keep us safe?
Reckless Drivers Wreck Families
Saturday evening in the city’s Outer Richmond District, a woman and her daughter were crossing 31st Avenue at Clement. Then the driver of a white Jeep suddenly swung onto 31st, directly into parent and child. The incident occurred around 6:15 PM. Surveillance footage caught the driver fleeing the scene, leaving two victims in need of immediate medical attention. SFPD are in search of the driver.
Here in one of the country’s densest urban areas, traffic injuries and fatalities appear to follow a painfully familiar cycle. An incident happens, sparking outrage. Concerned citizens speak of the victim’s innocence, their unwilling participation in an unchecked game of Red Light, Green Light. A protest-vigil hybrid manifests in front of City Hall made up of survivors and surviving relatives of those no longer with us. Someone mentions the dismal results of the Vision Zero experiment. The media tallies the deaths while survivors endure lengthy healing and legal processes. What’s actually a citywide experience gets reduced to an individual plight, and the cycle repeats itself.
Related: Zeitgeist Bartender Killed in Crash
At the center of the problem you’ll find remorseful and recalcitrant drivers alike, both reluctant to surrender their perceived freedom. You’re free to own a car in my opinion. Driving it however is a privilege, one people treat like a God-given right. Vision Zero had its work cut out for it when they challenged drivers to act responsibly behind the wheel. The issue is not just one of commitment to road safety. It’s about putting one’s own life above the rest.
How many more pedestrians will suffer?
The notion of one’s right to drive feels deeply American. It’s especially apparent when you try to take grandma’s keys after she hops the median for the fourth time. I wonder why we so closely associate driving with independence. Would as many city dwellers feel compelled to drive if an adequate transit network could support them?
I’m not saying the two victims of Saturday’s traffic incident or even its perpetrators should have taken Muni instead. But fewer drivers on the road in general could reduce collisions like this. At intersections like 31st and Clement, visibility is already limited. Shrink your reaction time to zero by driving at great speed and by the time you notice, it’s too late.
“I just heard a hit of car,” said the owner of a nearby business (ABC7). “Then I went outside and I saw there was a kid. She was screaming and crying, and my neighbors came down and they told us somebody, a jeep hit a kid and run away.”
The business owner’s security camera recorded the entire incident. Mother and daughter were in the crosswalk when they were hit. The culprit remains unidentified as of now. In an update from ABC7, both parent and child survived and were being treated for non-life-threatening injuries.
Howdy! My name is Katy Atchison and I'm an Associate Editor for Broke-Ass Stuart.
I want to take the time to say thank you for supporting independent news media by reading BrokeAssstuart.com. Supporting independent news sources like Broke-Ass Stuart is vital to supporting our community because it amplifies the voices of a wide variety of diverse opinions. You also help support small businesses and local artists by sharing stories from Broke-Ass Stuart.
Because you're one of our supporters, I wanted to send over a pro-tip.
Our bi-weekly newsletter is a great way to get round ups of Broke-Ass Stuart stories, learn about new businesses in The Bay Area, find out about fun local events and be first in line for giveaways.
If you’d like to get our newsletter, signup right here, it takes 5 seconds.
You Might Also Like
