Girl, 8, fatally struck while riding bike on sidewalk
CAMDEN, N.J. -- An 8-year-old girl was struck by an SUV and killed while she was riding her bicycle on a sidewalk in Camden, New Jersey.
Lela Cruz was struck near her home on the 400 block of State Street around 4:30 p.m.
Police said an 84-year-old man, identified by sources as Julius Watson of Camden, lost control of his vehicle, jumped the curb and hit Lela. According to investigators, he also struck 40-year-old Wordell Johnson, who was sitting on steps nearby.
All three were rushed to Cooper University Medical Center, where Lela later died.
Watson and Johnson both remain in stable condition.
"We pride ourselves on the ability to have children go outside to play at 4 o'clock in the afternoon. That's something that we worked hard to get," said Camden County Police Lt. Zsakhiem James. "Unfortunately you have these incidents that happen. The loss of any life, of course, is a poignant one, a loss to the community. To have a child lose her life at such a young age makes you think of the loss of the promise for the future of this city."
The specifics of this incident are still under investigation by both the Camden County Prosecutor's Office and Camden County Police.
As of Friday morning, no charges had been filed.
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