Lt. Wendy Stiver said the Dayton Police Department has several specialized traffic investigators on scene working to confirm several issues, including who was at fault.
According to police, the boy was a student at Kettering Middle School. They also told News Center 7’s Jessica Heffner that the woman driving the Hummer is a Dayton elementary school teacher. Police have not released her name or age, but did summon a priest to the scene to talk with her because she was very upset.
There was no word on whether any charges would be pursued.
The investigators are trying to determine whether the child was pedaling or stationary on the bike when he was struck, Stiver said.
Police and fire/rescue crews were dispatched on a report of a pedestrian struck at Watervliet Avenue and South Smithville Road, she said.
An eyewitness told News Center 7 that the boy was on the bike, at the edge of the parking lot, when the vehicle ran over him on the sidewalk and dragged him.
Stiver could not confirm any of that, instead repeating that the investigators would sort out what happened.
“Bicycling can be dangerous,” the lieutenant said. “Anybody riding a bicycle should wear a helmet and should know and follow the laws of the road.”
She did state that police “don’t suspect any drugs or alcohol at this time.”
The southbound lanes of Smithville Road were closed “for several hours” because of the investigation, Stiver said.
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