An eight-year-old boy was seriously injured and left in the street after a driver struck him with a black SUV outside his family's apartment building in Fort Worth and then fled the scene, authorities and the boy's family said.
The crash occurred just before 8 p.m. on Friday as the child, identified by his family as Liam Park, was riding his bicycle and playing with friends near the apartment complex, according to family statements and a fundraising page set up to help the family. Witnesses said the SUV hit the boy and at least once drove over him before the driver got out to look and then drove away.
Liam's mother, Baylea Christiansen, told reporters she found her son screaming and "covered in blood from his face to his arm." The boy told family members he briefly lost part of his vision after the collision and later described pain and difficulty sleeping. Medical personnel reportedly told the family he did not suffer broken bones but sustained severe skin injuries and bruising.
Friends who witnessed the incident ran to the apartment to alert the boy's mother, Christiansen said. Family members and the GoFundMe description said the boy's bicycle became wedged between him and the vehicle, which they believe helped keep his injuries from being more severe.
"He has been left injured, shaken, and deeply traumatized by this horrific event," Christiansen and the boy's father, Kyle Park, wrote on the fundraiser page. The family said Liam has been having trouble sleeping, has begun eating less, and has asked to move away from the apartment complex.
Witness accounts quoted by the family and the fundraiser say the driver briefly left the vehicle to check on the boy before returning to the SUV and driving away. Police confirmed that no arrests had been made and said the Traffic Investigation Unit is handling the investigation into the hit-and-run.
The family launched a fundraiser to cover legal representation, court and investigation fees and relocation costs. As of Tuesday morning, it had raised more than $2,800.
Christiansen said the family wants the driver found and held accountable. "For all you know, my son could be dead right now," she told reporters.
Fort Worth police did not immediately release additional details about the vehicle or a suspect. Investigators typically seek witness statements, surveillance footage and physical evidence from crash scenes in hit-and-run cases; police asked anyone with information to contact the department's Traffic Investigation Unit.
The boy was taken to a hospital and later released to his family. Authorities and the family said his injuries were not life-threatening, but they described significant physical pain and emotional trauma following the collision.
The incident underscores ongoing public safety and legal challenges in hit-and-run crashes, in which drivers who leave the scene can face felony charges when serious injury is involved. The Fort Worth Police Department did not immediately respond to a request for further comment.