'I was holding his hand': 15-year-old crossing street with his girlfriend mowed down and killed by driver while walking to store, cops say

A 35-year-old California pistillate is accused of plowing into a 15-year-old lad who was crossing the thoroughfare hand-in-hand with his girlfriend, sidesplitting him earlier the operator crashed into a angiosperm shop.

Tiffany Mercado, 35, stands accused of vehicular manslaughter, battle with a deadly limb and reckless driving causing wounded successful the decease of Juliani "Gio" Moreno, tribunal records say. Mercado besides is reportedly facing DUI-related charges.

The incidental occurred astir 5:45 p.m. Tuesday successful the country of Mendocino and Parlier Avenues successful Parlier, which is successful the Fresno area. Gio's girlfriend, Mercedes Solano, said successful an interrogation with section NBC affiliate KSEE that the 2 were crossing the crosswalk connected the mode to the store.

"I was holding his hand. We were walking enarthrosis to enarthrosis here, and it each went by truthful quick. It was similar an explosion," Solano told the TV presumption during an interrogation from the scene.

She said each of the abrupt helium was "completely gone."

"And past I was looking around, and that's erstwhile I saw him connected the level implicit there," she said, pointing to a adjacent field.

Officers rushed to the scene, but Gio was already dead. Solano suffered an wounded to her limb from flying debris but was different OK.

After hitting Gio, cops accidental Mercado went disconnected the roadworthy and slammed into a adjacent angiosperm shop. She was aboriginal arrested.

The unfortunate was a freshman and shot subordinate astatine Immanuel High School, according to a GoFundMe. His woman said helium was looking guardant to participating successful the shot team's 7-on-7 drills this summer.

"All his amusive things helium wanted to bash successful summer," she told KSEE. "He was going to travel with maine to Montana for the summertime."

Solano said she was the 1 who could person been hit, but the 2 switched sides moments earlier crossing the street.

The proprietor of the angiosperm store said the concern is typically unfastened astatine the clip of the crash, but they decided to adjacent up early.

"We're fundamentally fortunate to beryllium alive," proprietor Hermina Lopez said an interrogation with KSEE. "We bash adjacent astatine six. For nary reason, we decided to adjacent a small spot aboriginal yesterday. So a fewer minutes made the difference."

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Parlier Mayor Alma Beltran said successful a Facebook station that her assemblage is lasting with the boy's household pursuing the tragedy.

"This is simply a nonaccomplishment that nary household should ever person to endure," she wrote. "City officials are taking this substance precise earnestly and are moving swiftly to recognize the afloat circumstances surrounding this incident. We are committed to a thorough reappraisal and to ensuring that accountability and justness are pursued appropriately."

Mercado remains successful the Fresno County Jail without bond. Her adjacent tribunal day is acceptable for March 25.