Post by Scumhunter on Aug 19, 2021 2:43:10 GMT -5
(Above: From left, Daytona Bronas, 12, Sandra Mizer, 13, and Willow Sanchez, 11 were killed in the crash. Natalie Coe (14) was the sole survivor. Photo Credit: sbsun.com)
From sbsun.com:
More than a week after three girls were fatally struck in a Lucerne Valley hit-and-run that left another girl hospitalized long-term, some of the victims’ family members have grown frustrated at what they call a lack of information from California Highway Patrol investigators as the agency continues to search for the suspects responsible.
The crash took the lives of Willow Sanchez, 11, Daytona Bronas, 12, and Sandra Mizer, 13, and left 14-year-old Natalie Coe hospitalized in critical condition. Natalie and Daytona were using wheelchairs at the time of the crash, according to Sherrie Orndorff, Natalie’s mother and Willow’s sister.
As of Tuesday, June 15, no arrests have been made related to the incident, the CHP said.
Robbin Florence — the aunt of Willow and great-aunt of Natalie — described information regarding the CHP’s investigation as limited. Orndorff has been essentially left to play the “waiting game” for any updates, Florence said.
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“(The lack of information is) causing an uproar in the community,” Florence said. “People might start taking (the investigation) into their own hands.”
Orndorff said that there is a lot of “misplaced anger” within the local community as concrete investigative information remains scant.
“Whether it was was an accident or he was drinking or speeding, (the suspects) left, they made it a serious thing,” Orndorff said. “That was the most heartbreaking part.”
On June 5, at about 10:19 p.m., a white Chevrolet Silverado was heading north on Camp Rock Road at an unknown speed when it struck the girls from behind. After the crash, the driver and passenger abandoned the truck and fled the scene on foot, the CHP said.
Officer Ramon Duran, spokesman for the CHP, said Tuesday that he and the agency understood the frustrations regarding their investigative transparency. He said while some cases require the CHP to rely on the community for investigative leads, the suspect vehicle that was left at the scene gave investigators a number of leads to follow.
“This isn’t a case where we’re in the blind. We have the vehicle and there’s information you can get out of the vehicle to lead an investigation,” Duran said. “(Our investigators are) just not ready to put out information that could potentially endanger the case.”
Both the driver and the passenger are sought for their suspected criminal negligence in this incident, Duran said.
“We’re definitely looking for both people in the car,” Duran said. “The passenger in the vehicle also had legal obligation to render aid or call 911.”
Natalie, the crash’s sole survivor, has faced a tough path since the incident, Florence and Orndorff said. Her right leg was amputated, she has received dialysis treatments due to damage to both of her kidneys, both of her arms and left leg are fractured and she had “extensive” surgery on both of her hands.
“Those first few days we weren’t sure if she was going to make it,” Florence said.
Orndorff and her family have been with Natalie as she’s gone through her recovery at a hospital in Loma Linda. They have applied for housing at the Inland Empire Ronald McDonald House as Natalie still needs additional surgeries on her arms that will likely take weeks, if not months, Orndorff said.
Natalie and her friends were out for a stroll that evening when the crash happened, her mother said. About 10 minutes after the crash, Orndorff said that she was out searching for the girls when a friend of hers told her about the accident.
Since the tragedy, Orndorff said that she and her family have taken things “second-by-second.”
Natalie is described by her mother and Florence as a “caregiver” to her friends and younger siblings despite having to use a wheelchair as a result of arthrogryposis, a condition that causes multiple joint contractures.
“The wheelchair didn’t make her personality,” Orndorff said.
Willow — Orndorff’s youngest sister and Natalie’s aunt — was living in North Carolina with Florence prior to the crash. She was visiting Lucerne Valley for the summer and staying with her mother, Florence said.
Florence described Willow as a “survivor of circumstances” who “overcame challenges and loved people with the love of the lord.” Orndorff said Willow was extremely kind and sweet.
Her memorial service was held on Friday, June 11, and the expenses were covered by the state, Florence said.
Daytona was described by Orndorff as being “so considerate” because she would always apologize for herself. She spent the last week staying at Orndorff’s house before the crash.
Sandra was described as being an understanding “little adult” who would counsel her friends — and sometimes even Orndorff — through their problems, Orndorff said.
Natalie has made progress in her recent recovery though, her family said. Circulation has returned to both of her hands — an important aspect for wheelchair users, Florence pointed out. Doctors have been able to reduce her sedatives and she began opening her eyes and nodding her head to answer questions.
But Natalie still has much more to face moving forward. Orndorff said that the family has not yet begun working through her emotional recovery from the crash.
“When she comes to, she has to realize she’s missing a leg, her aunt and her two best friends,” Florence said.
A variety of fundraisers are being held to support both the memorial services for the other crash victims as well as support for Natalie’s family and her medical expenses. A GoFundMe for all of the victims was set up by the Lucerne Valley Unified School District as well as another dedicated to Natalie’s recovery that is ran by Florence.
Duran has and will continue to work with investigators to get the appropriate information to the public when the time is right, he said. He also mentioned the prospect of a news conference regarding the matter in the near future.
Any announcements regarding the investigation would be welcome news to the family and community, Florence said.
“As these services happen week after week, people are getting more angry,” Florence said.
www.sbsun.com/2021/06/15/answers-sought-in-aftermath-of-lucerne-valley-hit-and-run-that-killed-3-girls-and-hospitalized-another/
Additional article on case: sweetjames.com/2021/06/11/willow-sanchez-daytona-bronas-sandra-mizer-killed-hit-and-run-crash-camp-rock-road-lucerne-valley-ca/
Thoughts? Just a note I found this case from a posting from Sherrie Orndorff to the In Pursuit: Missing and Wanted Facebook group. I wanted to let Sherrie know if she comes across our page that this is an unofficial fan page for In Pursuit, but I was so outraged upon reading your story and that the hit-and-run driver (and their passenger) still haven't been caught yet that I wanted to post this case to our forum to help spread the news on the manhunt in any way possible. We've seen way too many of these cases on the forum, but this ranks right up there as one of the most tragic and heartbreaking ones.
Admin Note #1: According to online articles, anyone with information on this case is asked to contact the Victorville CHP (California Highway Patrol) office at 760-241-1186.
Admin Note #2: If you have any (news-related) updates on this case, please contact us here: amwfans.com/thread/1662/website-contact-form
