A 22-year-old man hit by an SUV while riding a scooter to a meeting in D.C. is in a medically induced coma, and his family is asking for the public's help to find the hit-and-run driver involved.
Sam Kessleman, a recent graduate of Cornell University, was riding a scooter to a work meeting for Ernst and Young about 7:30 p.m. Thursday, when an SUV hit him at the intersection of New Jersey Avenue and P Street NW, police and family said.
The driver of a white Mazda CX-5 was trying to pass another car at the intersection when the Mazda hit Kessleman, according to the police report.
Kessleman's colleagues realized something was wrong when they tracked his iPhone and it showed his location was Howard University Hospital. His coworkers told Kessleman's girlfriend, who then told his family, his parents said.
Kessleman suffered severe injuries to his brain.
“The team at Howard was able to start their surgery within two hours after the accident and everyone believes that was critical to Sam surviving that night," Kessleman's father, Steve Kessleman, said.
Sam Kessleman was later moved to Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, where doctors have put him in a medically induced coma to relieve the brain swelling.
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"Which is basically what is going to determine whether he lives or dies," Kessleman's mother, Alison Schecter, said.
In addition to his head injuries, he suffered extensive injuries to other parts of his body.
"Right now, we have everybody praying for him," Schecter said.
D.C. police are offering a reward for information on the hit-and-run driver.
The family and authorities are urging anyone who can identify the Mazda or who has any information to call police at 202-727-9099 or text 50411.
“... [S]o that driver will get the accountability that’s required and Sam gets the justice that he deserves," Steve Kessleman said.
