CMPD searching for driver in hit-and-run that injures teen

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department is asking for the public's help to identify a driver who struck a teenager on a crosswalk in south Charlotte Sunday night.

Police said 18-year-old Jessica Copenhaver had the right of way in the crosswalk at South Boulevard and Sharon Road West when the driver barreled through the intersection at 45 mph and hit her head-on.

"One of the scariest moments of my life was seeing her so high in the air and just come down and land like that," said Copenhaver's boyfriend, David Fuller, who was just feet away.

Witnesses said the driver never stopped, and actually swerved around Copenhaver's body in the street before speeding away.

"They just left me. If I had been by myself, I could have died," Copenhaver told Channel 9 in a tear-filled interview.

MEDIC took Copenhaver to Carolinas Medical Center Main, where doctors diagnosed her with a concussion and a fractured skull.

Doctors estimate her recovery time to be six weeks, and have ordered her to stay at home while her body heals.

Copenhaver said all she can think about is why the driver never stopped to check on her.

"I just hope they find it in themselves to turn themselves in for doing something like that," she said.

The suspect vehicle is described as a silver, four-door sedan, possibly with front-end damage and missing hubcaps on the passenger wheels.

Anyone with information is urged to call CMPD.

WSOC