Daughter, mother killed in separate hit-and-runs within weeks of each other

DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — A family is grieving the loss of their mother and their sister after both were killed in separate hit-and-run incidents.

“It doesn’t add up, because why would you just leave and not even check to see what was going on?” sister Adrianna Gaither asked.

According to DeKalb County police, Jasmine Gaither, 31, was a passenger in one of four cars involved in a crash along Interstate 85 southbound on Friday night.

As Jasmine Gaither and other people in the cars stood by the road and waited for police to arrive, officers said another driver attempted to make a lane change but clipped the back of one of the parked vehicles.

The driver then lost control and slammed into the vehicle Jasmine Gaither was standing next to. She died hours later at Grady Memorial Hospital. Police said the driver sped away.

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“Now she’s gone, and we just don’t know how were going to make it through,” sister Brittany Flournoy said.

On Tuesday, police arrested Lester C. Rodriguez and charged him with homicide by vehicle.

Flournoy and Adrianna Gaither said they are now dealing with a double portion of grief.

In October, a driver struck and killed their mother on Stanton Road in Atlanta.

“The same thing just happened, and I just don’t understand how something could happen so soon because you just don’t get over grief,” Flournoy said.

The family has set up a GoFundMe page to help with funeral expenses.

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