Woman’s identity remains a mystery a year after she was struck by car and critically injured

PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Officials are still trying to identify a woman who was critically injured last year after being struck by a car on Broad Street. Investigators are turning to a forensic genealogist for answers.

On May 18, 2025, the woman — who is believed to be in her 30s, possibly 40s — was struck as she stood in the middle of Broad Street, near Wyoming Avenue. The driver stopped and was never charged.

She was found with no identification, only a receipt from Acme.

“She’s conscious, she is able to open her eyes, but she’s unable to communicate in any way,” said Capt. Stephen Clark with the Crash Investigation Division.

She has brown hair, now with some streaks of gray, and she has a few tattoos — one that looks like flowers on her shoulder.

“She may look a little thinner because she was severely injured,” said Bill Fleisher, an investigator with the Keystone Intelligence Network, which is working with both Philly police and Jefferson Einstein Hospital, where the woman is being treated. “She lost her leg; it had to be amputated. And the fact that she is not moving around, there may be some swelling in her facial features that haven’t subsided.”

Investigators are using a forensic genealogist to go through her genetic family tree, in the hopes of figuring out who she is and where she’s from.

“We’re hoping, fingers crossed, that DNA will be the answer,” Fleisher said.

They have also connected with several police departments in various states across the U.S. to see if she matches any of their missing people, but no luck so far.

“Somewhere, somebody knows who she is,” said Fleisher. “It is another sad story of a poor woman, maybe homeless, unidentified, [who] deserves people who care about her. And they care very much for her at the hospital … but there is a family somewhere, and we would like to reconnect her with her family.”

Anyone who knows the woman is asked to contact Jefferson Einstein Hospital or police at 215-685-3180 or the tipline at 215-686-8477.