New father paralyzed after hit-and-run crash in Kent
KENT, Wash. - A family is looking for help tracking down a driver who hit a man on a motorcycle and kept going, changing his life forever.
Prior to the accident, life for Herman Webster and his partner Marci was finally what they’d dreamed of.
Marci said after trying for a while, the two had their first baby. Almost three months to the day their daughter Morgan was born, Herman went out for a ride on his motorcycle with his best friend. It was around 1 am Wednesday morning, the two were riding up to the intersection in front of Mill Creek Middle School in Kent.
"We got a green light up to the intersection and a lady tried to make the light in front of us," said Herman’s friend Aaron Johnson.
Aaron said the driver was a woman he thinks had light-colored hair and was driving a dark-colored car ran a red light and cut across four lanes of traffic, slamming into Herman.
"She stopped for about two seconds, long enough for me to tell her to call the police, and then she took off," Aaron said.
In disbelief, Aaron says he wanted to go after her but knew he needed to stay with Herman and break the news to Marci.
"All of my worst fears came true," she said.
Marci said initially doctors weren’t sure if he’d survive. When Herman pulled through it felt like a miracle, but there was still devastating news to come.
"He is paralyzed from the waist down, with no sensation and no muscle control and most likely will never walk again. It still doesn't feel real, I keep waiting to wake up," said Marci.
The prospect that Herman, a very active mechanic with so many future plans with his daughter will likely be in a wheelchair the rest of his life feels impossible for loved ones to process.
"He's very positive about it right now, of course sad, but he's hard-headed and swears he's going to walk again," she said.
Marci says Herman is determined to recover so he can see leave the hospital and see his daughter, who can’t come due to COVID restrictions. That’s keeping him fighting, but she knows it could be a while.
"The one thing I’m holding onto is that our daughter is young enough that this is just going to be her normal, that she's only going to know her dad as he is now as opposed to being a little bit older and having to adjust to the trauma to this too, but her life is going to be very different because of this."
Marci said the tragedy is compounded knowing the driver sped off, seemingly not caring if he lived or died.
"I don't know what she was going through that night, but I know that now our lives are forever changed."
If you have any information on the hit and run you can submit an anonymous tip through crime stoppers and be eligible for a cash reward of up to one thousand dollars. You can submit your tip using the P3 Tips app on your smartphone or by calling 1-800-222-tips.
Herman and Marci will be heavily impacted financially because of the crash. Friends have set up a gofundme on their behalf, as well as a Facebook fundraiser.
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