Local

15-year-old struck, killed riding bike

LAGRANGE, Ga. — The parents of a 15-year-old hit and killed while riding his bike want the driver who hit him to know they don't blame him.

Brandon Truitt was killed Monday night near LaGrange.

His mother says his death has left her with a feeling she doesn't want to share.

"It's a feeling I wouldn't want my worst enemy to have -- to have to bury your own child at 15," Sheree Lovelace said.

Brandon's father was also having a difficult time dealing with his son's death.

"It's hard. You never think you have to bury your own child. You think they're going to bury you," Ben Truitt told Channel 2 Tom Jones.

Georgia State Patrol says Brandon was crossing Wares Cross Road when he was hit by a truck.

Brandon's parents say he was visiting a friend in the area and the two rode their bikes to a convenience store and were returning home when the accident happened just before 7.

"Young guy. Just hate to see something like that happen to a kid," said Vance Griffin, who lives near the accident scene.

His wife and daughter heard screaming outside and he rushed out to see what was going on. He saw Brandon on the ground, the driver nearby. Griffin says that's when he and the driver of the truck ran to Brandon's aid.

"We checked on him. We tried to respond to him and we saw he wasn't responding. Wasn't moving," Griffin said.

Brandon died soon after that.

The LaGrange High School sophomore had quite a future as a baseball player. He was a pitcher.

His family and coaches say he had the talent to go far.

"He was going to be able to throw it pretty well for us on the mound," LaGrange head baseball coach Todd Herrington said.

Brandon's parents want the driver to know it was God's will that their son is gone.

"No. I don't blame him," Lovelace said. "If it wasn't God's will to take my baby, he wouldn't have left."

His father says the conditions that night made it difficult for the driver to see his son.

"It was a dark road and the road was winding and there was a hill that the driver had to go over," the elder Truitt said

Georgia State Patrol told Jones the driver will not face charges.

Brandon's funeral is set for Monday afternoon at New Community Baptist Church.