“Every day, you find new ways to take my breath away,” was the message inside of a Valentine’s Day card found at the scene of a hit and run incident, Friday afternoon around 2:20 p.m. in the parking lot of Phase II, south of building 20.
“Apparently this was over Valentine’s Day,” one witness said, “and it looked like it could have been avoided.”
According to Police Chief Algray Pettus of Prairie View A & M University Department of Public Safety, a verbal altercation occurred between one young woman driving a vehicle and three other individuals. At some point the verbal altercation turned into a physical altercation, resulting in one individual being struck by the vehicle.
“We can tell she was struck at least once by the vehicle and sustained injuries mostly to her lower legs, multiple lacerations and wounds. It does not appear to be life-threatening, although the injuries are serious,” Pettus said.
Authorities are still investigating how the physical altercation ended with a young woman being ran over. No names have been released. However, Pettus confirmed that the driver of the vehicle is enrolled in the Prairie View nursing school and the injured party is a student on the main campus.
“Based on accounts from witnesses, we put a bulletin out to apprehend the driver who was seen leaving campus driving east on Hwy. 290. With the help of the Houston police and other Harris County and Waller County officials, we were able to apprehend the subject who was turned in by the city of Houston Police Department on a traffic violation,” Pettus said.
“We then brought her to campus to question and interview her concerning her involvement in the incident,” he continued.
The Prairie View A & M University Department of Public Safety issued a complaint warrant with the magistrate’s office and once the investigation has been completed some type of prosecution on a charge is anticipated.
“We will recommend prosecution. Pending the investigation, she may be charged,” the police chief said.
Apparently the incident occurred during a shift change. One officer was leaving duty when he noticed the commotion and responded to the gathering of a large crowd. When the officer arrived, he discovered the woman lying in the middle of the street having been hit by a vehicle.
According to Pettus, close to 200 individuals were standing around outside.
The young lady was initially treated by the Waller County Medical Facility EMS. An EMT on the scene determined that immediate medical attention was needed and the young lady was life-flighted to Memorial Hermann Hospital.
Contact with the injured party is limited.
“We have talked to the parents but not the young lady. She’s still hospitalized. It’ll probably be done once her condition improves,” Pettus said.
“I couldn’t see any reason for an altercation to escalate to a situation of that magnitude. Somehow these two women were involved with the same young man and a disagreement occurred. It seemed to be an incident that was spawned from the Valentine’s Day holiday,” Pettus said.
The Department of Public Safety is asking anyone with any pertinent information to contact them immediately on the non-emergency phone line.