SANFORD, Fla. – Lakisha Debose has spent every second she can by her daughter’s side the last week.
Three-year-old Harmonie Rose Bryant has been surrounded by doctors and nurses at the hospital, where she’s been receiving care ever since she was almost killed in a hit-and-run crash in Sanford.
Debose tells News 6 she was sitting on the porch at their home on Persimmon Avenue while the 3-year-old was playing with her brother. All of the sudden, she said a driver lost control and struck her little girl.
“He hit the barricade and lost control and hit Harmonie,” Debose said. “Her brother was right there. I don’t understand how it didn’t hit him as well.”
[3-year-old struck, critically injured in Sanford hit-and-run]
Sanford police say after the crash, the driver ran away and left the car behind. When News 6 checked in on the status of their investigation Thursday, we were told that two persons of interest have been identified, but no one has been arrested yet.
“It just hurts me to my heart knowing this is my poor little baby,’ Debose said.
Debose said it’s been frustrating to see her little girl in so much pain and to not see any consequences for who is responsible yet. She told our News 6 crew that Harmonie has a fractured skull and injuries to her spine and pelvic bone, among others.
When she spoke to News 6 just outside Arnold Palmer hospital on Thursday, she said, “It’s just been a long week.”
“She’s doing better. We just left the gym. She’s pointing and she’s shaking her head, ‘Yes and no,’” Debose said. “We’re going to be here quite some time.”
A newly released report from Sanford police shows witnesses told officers they heard a “boom” when the crash happened and then saw a man exit the car and run through driveways.
911 audio also obtained by News 6 reveals multiple people called for help, including one man who told dispatch he was watching the suspect running down Persimmon Avenue toward the railroad tracks while wearing shorts and glasses.
After the initial crash, Sanford police told our team that they had spoken to several people who matched the description witnesses gave to them.
The scene of the crash near SW Road and Persimmon Avenue is just down the street from the Crooms Academy of Information and Technology. It’s also just under a mile from the Sanford police station.
Debose said her daughter and son were playing “Red light, green light” when the car came speeding down the street. The speed limit is 25 mph, Debose said.
“Somebody really needs to come forward,” Debose said. “We need answers. We need justice.”
Sanford police told News 6 their investigation is active and ongoing.