Los Angeles

Woman in Wheelchair Fatally Struck by Hit-and-Run Driver in North Hollywood

Friends of the woman in a wheelchair who was struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver in North Hollywood say she had just celebrated her 75th birthday.

Patricia Richison had cerebral palsy, and friends say the congenital disorder stole her mobility, but not her spirit.

"Pat was in that wheelchair, but she was as independent as they come," said Kristina Fisher, her caretaker. "The wheelchair didn't define her."

The Los Angeles Police Department released surveillance video of the white Ford transit van that struck Richison and her scooter early Tuesday morning, scattering debris and fleeing eastbound on Burbank Boulevard at Bonner Avenue.

"That driver should have stopped," said LAPD Det. Bill Bustos. "That person was in the best position to call 911, render aid. But that did not occur."

Friends dearly wish that driver had helped.

"To run her over like that and keep going?" said neighboor Pat Collins. "It's just totally unbelievable to me."

Tributes filled the corner where she was last seen alive. Richison lived near the area for decades.

"We're family," Kristina Fisher said. "She referred to me as her daughter. She was my white mother."

A GoFundMe page was set up to raise funds for Richerson's funeral.

"I know she's enjoying all this attention 'cause she loved attention," Sonia Fisher said. "We're gonna miss her. We miss her now."

A standing reward of up to $50,000, offered by the city of Los Angeles, is available for anyone providing information that helps solve a fatal hit-and-run. Anyone with information on the case was urged to call police at (877) LAPD-247.

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