CINCINNATI -- The car that struck and killed a 77-year-old woman crossing Central Avenue Tuesday night didn’t even slow down before driving away from the scene, according to Cincinnati police.
Irene Swain, 77, died Thursday when she was taken off life support. She was unresponsive after being hit Tuesday night, her grandson said.
Around 8 p.m. Tuesday, the driver of a silver four-door sedan was traveling north and struck Swain at 910 Central Ave, according to a release from the Cincinnati Police Department. The vehicle continued north on Central Avenue and turned east on Court Street without stopping to check on Swain's condition.
From Cincinnati PD: Updated image of car involved in hit-skip at Ninth and Central.
Swain was transported to UC Medical Center and was listed in critical condition Tuesday night; by Wednesday, her grandson Bobby Cocrel said, she was unresponsive.
According to Cocrel, who spent the night in the hospital with his grandmother, doctors told him the force of the impact shattered Swain's pelvis and ribs and left her with critical brain damage.
"Her heart stopped two times last night," he said. "They were trying to say she was really dead at impact and they've just been keeping her body alive."
Swain's condition did not improve and family members made the tough decision to take her off life support on Thursday, Cocrel said.
"Whoever did it really did kill my grandma," he said. "You hurt a lot of people with what you did. (She was) a wonderful, strong woman."
Authorities said the vehicle, which did not have a front license plate, would likely have visible damage to its windshield and hood. Police encourage anyone who believes they saw the car in question to call police at (513)-352-2514.
