WALLED LAKE (WWJ) – Police have begun turning over evidence to prosecutors in Oakland County as the investigation into a crash that killed a 13-year-old girl continues.
The girl was riding with her mother and sister on March 22 in Walled Lake when their car was struck by a Jeep.
While investigators continue to look into the deadly crash, Sheriff Mike Bouchard called it “such a complex case,” noting it took a lot of work to identify the suspects in the Jeep.
“There were multiple witness accounts and statements to gather, videos to find and review, the physical examination of multiple vehicles, DNA evidence to gather and process,” Bouchard said. “Much of the case has been presented to the Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office, with more to follow.”
Prosecutors will decide what charges will be levied in the case.
The crash happened around 7:45 p.m. on March 22 on eastbound Maple Road near Decker Road. The Jeep Gladiator, which investigators initially believed was fleeing the scene of a separate crash, collided with two other vehicles.
The 13-year-old was in a Honda Fit, driven by her 51-year-old mother from Commerce Township, along with her 10-year-old sister. The car was headed north on Decker at the time of the collision.
Paramedics removed the teen from the car and took her to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead a short time later.
The 10-year-old was ejected from the vehicle. The mother and her 10-year-old daughter were both seriously injured, but have since been released from the hospital and are recovering at home.
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A 43-year-old Commerce Township resident and their 10-year-old son were in a Chevy Equinox headed south on Decker when they were hit by the Jeep. Both were wearing seatbelts at the time and were treated and released.
A fourth vehicle, a Cadillac STX, was stopped at the light at Maple and Decker when it was struck by the Honda as it spun. The driver, a 58-year-old Commerce Township woman, was treated and released. She was wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash.
The suspects in the Jeep ran from the scene. Police said back in March they believed they were young men in their late teens or early 20s from West Bloomfield.
Bouchard said the suspects have been identified, but authorities have not released their names, as the investigation continues. Officials did not say whether any arrests have been made.
Bouchard said the process of submitting the case to prosecutors is time consuming because of “the sheer volume of documents, videos and physical evidence that was gathered during the investigation.”
The Sheriff’s Office Special Investigations Unit, Fugitive Apprehension Team, Computer Crimes Unit, Forensic Science and DNA lab, road patrol as well as Crash Reconstruction Unit all worked the case, with as many as 15 people working on the case at one time.
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