West Side community members are calling for stronger penalties for the driver accused of hitting and killing an Austin fourth grader outside his school.
Anakin Perez, 9, was crossing the street in front of McNair Elementary, 4820 W. Walton St., on Sept. 18 when a woman driving westbound hit him before dragging him under her car, police and family said. Anakin — remembered as a friendly, athletic, lovable and energetic child — was brought to a local hospital, where he died from his injuries.
The driver was taken into custody that day and issued a citation before being released, police said. But even that citation has been reduced in court, the family’s lawyers say.
During the driver’s first court appearance on Oct. 22, prosecutors transferred the misdemeanor citation to traffic court, attorney Michael Adler said. Currently, the driver has only received a citation for failure to exercise due care to a pedestrian in the road, he said.
Anakin’s family and his neighbors are calling for criminal charges to be brought against the driver. A petition calling for the stronger charges has garnered nearly 1,300 signatures.
“It’s like my son’s case, my son’s death, is not being heard,” said Alejandra Gallegos, Anakin’s mother. “It just isn’t fair.”
The family and attorneys point to several factors that merited criminal charges for the driver, whom Block Club is not naming because she hasn’t been criminally charged.
The driver fled the scene upon fatally striking Anakin and eventually returned nearly 30 minutes later, according to the family and video reviewed by Block Club.
Fleeing the scene of an accident is a felony, with elevated charges possible for not returning until 30 minutes later, according to state law. A field sobriety test is required for anyone fleeing the scene of an accident, and if the test is refused, their driver’s license is to be revoked.
Adler said the driver fled the scene and refused a sobriety test, but no felony charges were brought.
“To put it in the simplest way, she fled the scene of a homicide. That is a felony,” said Adler. “The police knew she met the definition of the law, but they just said, ‘We’ll give her some grace.’”
Community outcry was swift following Anakin’s death.
The afternoon of the incident, dozens of family members, McNair staff and parents alongside Austin community members held a memorial vigil for the fourth grader. Community members at the vigil recalled Anakin as a joyful kid who loved coming to their homes to play. Classmates tearfully embraced as they remembered him.
Several people at the vigil spoke out on the need for more crossing guards at the school, which currently only has one.
The following day, a GoFundMe was started to help the family, described in the campaign as being financially overwhelmed by the sudden loss. On Oct. 17, the Change.org petition was started by a family friend titled “Justice for Anakin Perez! His death was worth more than 1 ticket!”
“Anakin’s tragic death was a painful reminder that these reckless driving behaviors cannot continue,” the petition reads. ” We must act now to prevent another tragedy. We urge the City of Chicago and local authorities to put this woman behind bars and implement stricter enforcement of traffic laws, especially in school zones and small streets throughout the Chicago neighborhood.”
According to Chicago police arrest records, the driver was arrested in May 2015 for driving with a suspended license. The family’s attorney claims she has a pending DUI case.
Gallegos hopes that the added attention to the case can motivate the Cook County State’s Attorney Office to reevaluate.
“In an ideal world, what I would like to see is for her to be criminally charged, for them to properly investigate my son’s case,” Gallegos said. “We’re talking about somebody that had a whole life ahead of him, who had no idea what was going to happen that day, because he was just trying to cross the street to go to school.”
A spokesperson for the State’s Attorney’s office said charging decisions are based on police investigations and recommendations.
“We have not been contacted by law enforcement to review this incident for potential felony criminal charges,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “The Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office remains open to reviewing any information that is brought to us by police, as all charging decisions are based on the evidence and the law. Our office remains committed to pursuing justice for everyone in our communities.”
A Chicago police spokesperson said the investigation into the incident remains open. In the meantime, the family of Anakin Perez is pursuing a potential civil lawsuit, their attorneys said.
The driver in the case did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
