ATLANTA — A 19-year-old driver is behind bars after police say he hit and killed an elderly woman in a restaurant parking lot Thursday.
Police say the teen backed over the 78-year-old woman just after 2 p.m. at the Applebee’s on Cascade Road.
“Somebody hit her. Just backed out and hit her,” witness Valprice Littleton told Channel 2’s Amy Napier Viteri.
A family friend identified the victim as Mabel Benning. Her daughter says Benning was well-known in Atlanta’s theater community.
Benning’s daughter told Viteri she’s still trying to process how it happened and hopes this will serve as a warning to other drivers.
"She's an amazing mother. I'm sorry she's gone. People need to watch where they're driving,” she said.
Police charged Jerrell Acklin, 19, with homicide by vehicle. A police spokesperson told Viteri it was an accident, but officers felt there was enough to charge Acklin.
WSBTV
