This case caught my eye as I am from NC and went to college at UNC-CH. Consequently, I've spent a lot of time in and around Raleigh.
A few things: 1. Until we know more, let's not give the Shaw U. students any blame for not calling the authorities. When I was in college, I'd call authorities/intervene only if a stranger was having a medical emergency or in imminent danger (woman passed out half naked in frat house, etc), especially if that person said no to my offers of help. Downtown Raleigh is pretty populated at night; I'd assume his friends would be along to collect him momentarily, and if not the cops are always around and cabs can be found. If this is a case of the deceased simply drinking too much and wandering into traffic, he unfortunately bears the responsibility for his own actions.
2. There have been several hit and run cases where the driver didn't know they hit a person. In Atlanta I remember a child getting out of his home at night and wondering alone onto I-285 at 4am. A driver hit and killed the child - didn't realize it until some days later after hearing the story on the news. The driver thought s/he'd hit an animal. Depending on the circumstances (like if this young man collapsed in the road or had fallen), it's possible the driver thought it was a deer. Again, I tend to give benefit of the doubt until I know otherwise. Especially when it's dark outside.
This is a terrible case - I feel for his friends and family. My son shares a name with this young man.
Good post, Island_Chica.:seeya:
I have not seen or heard any news article that stated that he was found hurt or wounded by anyone and they did not act to call help for him; I have not heard/read that he was found passed out by the side of the road. The only thing I have read is about the students who saw him lying on the ground near the Convention Center, offered help, and he said the didn't need it. And they apparently somehow let his mother know this so they she would know he was okay at the time they saw him. I do think that was a good thing to do: offer to help and then let his worried mom know that things seemed okay when they encountered him.
So far, the article cited below, and a similar account from WRAL, states that the folks who saw him heard him speak and that he said he didn't need help.
"After circulating a description and a photo, friends and family members said they talked with a few people who reported seeing him later that night. Although one group reported that they had seen Vandemerwe “inebriated” and lying on the ground off Lenoir Street, he refused assistance, and no one called for help."
from:
http://www.newsobserver.com/2013/08...i-40-near-hammond.html#emlnl=Crime_and_Safety
I'm with you -- unless he showed signs of being in distress or endangerment -- it doesn't sound like they should have done more.
I haven't heard or seen anything that said he had been harmed prior to his body being found and being a victim of hit and run. But I certainly could have missed a news media report stating such. Dunno.
What I'm saying is that something may have happened between the place he was seen to be okay and the place his body was found.
I hope we will see something more definite soon. His family must be going mad with grief, regret and terrible sorrow.
And I too, know of a case where a co-worker of mine ran over a drunk who was lying in the road at night in an unpopulated area and did not know it till days later. I heard it from his own account. He, too, thought he had run over a dead animal or something in the road, although he did not see anything. He was returning home, in a company car on company business late at night, and was sober, etc. It was awful, but he was not arrested or charged.
