A suspect was arrested in the death of 72-year-old Harriett Reynolds, who was killed on New Year’s Eve in a crash initially reported as a hit-and-run, the Riverdale Police Department said.
“I was hoping I was going to feel better,” said Consuela Vernor, Reynolds’ daughter. “I have no words for this whole situation. It’s a relief that the person did turn himself in, it is a relief. That doesn’t bring my mother back, though.”
Police declined to identify the suspect or to speak on potential charges to the Daily Southtown.
“I hope they charge him to the fullest, and I hope he spends the rest of his life in jail,” Vernor said. “And I hope they do not release him on bail.”
Vernor said she was told that the suspect would be charged with driving with a revoked license causing death, along with obstructing justice and tampering with evidence. Charges had not yet appeared in the Cook County court computer as of midday Wednesday.
“I really do appreciate the hard work they did, the Riverdale Police Department,” Vernor said. “I thank God for the justice that’s being served. Whatever happens, I know I just have to leave it in God’s hands. I don’t have the strength to deal with it. This loss is too heavy on my heart.”
Reynolds was struck outside an HP gas station on East 146th Street in Riverdale. She walked there from the nearby senior housing complex, Our Savior’s Senior Housing, where she lived.
The thought of her last moments haunts Vernor.
“I can’t sleep. I can’t stop moving,” Vernor said. “It’s terrible what happened to my mom, and I have to think about the last thoughts of my mom, being ran over like that.”
Vernor said police told her following the accident, the driver remained on the scene, moved the body and lied about what had happened, creating the narrative that the crash had been a hit-and-run.
“It’s not fair that he gets to walk and breathe, and maybe get out of jail, and live his life,” Vernor said.
Vernor created a Gofundme to raise funeral expenses for her mother, who did not have life insurance. Services are planned for Jan. 17, she said.
“This is just a very tragic thing that happened to our family, and we will never be the same,” Vernor said. “My momma was really loved in the community. Everyone loved my mother.”
Vernor plans on attending every hearing and court date, she said.
“My mother probably is resting well now. She probably was following that man around,” Vernor said. “So now I hope that she can rest. But for me, the fight has just begun.”
In addition to justice for her mother’s death, Vernor said she wants to see the road between the senior home and the gas station where she was struck made safer, so that similar tragedies can be avoided.
“It’s no yellow caution signs on that block at all,” Vernor said. “It’s a senior building with a hundred people over there.”
elewis@chicagotribune.com
