Crime & Safety

Trick-or-Treater Struck by Car in Edgewood Saturday Night

The child was taken to Children's Hospital after accident on Maple Avenue.

A Penn Hills boy, about 4 or 5 years old, was reported to be in serious condition at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh Saturday night after being hit by a car while trick-or-treating near Edgewood Primary School.

The boy was reportedly wearing a dark-colored ninja costume, which might have made him difficult to see as he and his grandmother attempted to cross Linden Avenue. He was unconscious at the scene and Edgewood police called in homicide detectives as a precaution because of the nature of the injury, according to the KDKA website.

Heidi McDonald, a former Edgewood councilwoman, was trick or treating with her son on Linden Avenue just four doors from the corner of Maple Avenue when the accident happened about 7:30 p.m.

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"We heard screaming," McDonald said. "We initially thought it was a group of teenagers being crazy on Halloween. When people started blocking off Maple, themselves, until the authorities could arrive, it became evident what had happened. Our priority at that point was to get my son away from there right away."

McDonald said the child was taken to the nearby home of Gretchen Zelinsky, who is a nurse. Zelinsky treated the child until authorities arrived, she said.

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Chief Robert Payne told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that police will investigate whether speed was a factor in the incident.

Payne said the driver, a 26-year-old woman from Edgewood, stopped immediately after the incident. The police planned to test the woman for drugs and alcohol and are deciding whether to file charges against her.

Click here for the KDKA story.

Click here for the Tribune-Review story.

Check back with Patch for updates.


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