Evelyn Modacure said she has spent nearly a decade seeking justice for her daughter, Katina Runnels, who was struck and killed by a speeding vehicle in the 4500 block of West Washington Boulevard in Chicago's West Garfield Park neighborhood. The crash happened nine years ago on July 2, 2017.
Modacure keeps her daughter's ashes in a blue-lit cabinet in the corner of her living room, a constant reminder of the loss. She recalled hearing the crash from about a block away before receiving a phone call from Runnels.
"She was like, 'Mama, I'm okay, I'm on my way back to you,' and before she got the whole sentence out, the phone dropped, and I knew at that instant," Modacure said.
Runnels, 27, died a short time later. The driver left the scene and has never been identified.
"I think it's not going to be solved, but I have to do my part. I have to keep going. I have to keep calling. I have to keep her name going," Modacure said.
Modacure continues to display her daughter's name and image on signs and T-shirts to ensure she is not forgotten. She said preserving Runnels' memory is especially important for her three children, who are now being raised by Modacure.
While she worries the case may never be solved, Modacure said she was frustrated by what she viewed as a lack of communication from investigators.
"They never spoke to me. The detective never spoke to me. I had to go find him," she said.
Lance Northcutt, a personal injury attorney with Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard and a former Cook County prosecutor, said he frequently sees a lack of follow-up in fatal hit-and-run cases. He said nearly half of all pedestrian fatalities in Chicago are hit-and-run crashes.
"For cases involving death or great bodily harm, you're talking about a clearance rate that's a little above 9% which is less than a third of what other cities, like New York, typically have," Northcutt said.
Northcutt attributed the low clearance rate to a lack of resources within the Chicago Police Department. He said hit-and-run crashes have reached epidemic proportions in Chicago.
For Modacure, the chances of finding the person responsible for her daughter's death may be slim, but she said she remains committed to seeking answers.
"I need closure for her kids and for myself and you know her grandmother and everybody that loved her, because all our lives changed at that given time," Modacure said.
Modacure said she has no plans to stop contacting police about the case. Northcutt said clearance rates are unlikely to improve unless the Chicago Police Department's major accidents division receives additional funding and investments are made in forensic technology.