A 66-year-old man recently diagnosed with dementia was killed in a hit-and-run Tuesday in Kingman Park, a few blocks from Eliot-Hine Middle School in Northeast D.C.
Ronnie Clark was standing near 16th and C streets NE on Christmas Eve when the driver of a Nissan jumped the curb and hit him, leaving him trapped under the car. Clark died at the scene.
Clark came from a family of six and graduated from William and Mary. He had a career in politics working for both the Bill Clinton and Al Gore campaigns before later becoming a bartender at a hotel in D.C.
But his health had declined in recent years and had difficulty getting around, according to his older brother.
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“I really had hope that my brother would have recovered from this, and so I was working very hard at making sure that he got the medical attention that he needed,” his older brother, Daniel Clark, said.
He said he raced to the scene from Chesterfield, Virginia, when he heard what happened. He said he saw the remains of the crash and met with the man who was standing with his brother before he was struck.
He said his younger brother and a friend were standing on the sidewalk about 7 p.m. when he was struck. Witnesses say the driver who jumped the curb and hit Ronnie Clark then got out and ran away.
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“I have a real problem with that, so I am going to ask him once again. If you’re out there, if you’re in my voice, if you can hear me — I’m going to ask that you turn yourself in to the nearest police station as soon as possible,” his older brother said.
D.C. police say the vehicle was not stolen and they are trying to learn who may have been behind the wheel during the crash. Police only have a vague description of the driver, and as of Thursday, were still searching for the suspect.
“This was not my plan for my baby brother to be mowed down on Christmas Eve by an individual that gets out of the car and run,” Daniel Clark said.
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