SAN ANTONIO, Texas – The mother of a woman killed in a hit-and-run crash outside her East Side home says the suspected driver will have to answer to a higher power for what he is accused of.
>> Family, neighbors call for safety measures after speeding driver kills woman on East Side porch
Esther Hamilton says her faith has helped her cope with the loss of her daughter.
Janice Walker, 70, was sitting on the porch of her mother’s home, steps from the DaFoste Park trailhead, when a black Mercedes-Benz missed a curve and slammed into her on Nov. 11.
The impact sent Walker flying into the living room of Hamilton’s home and caused major damage to the structure itself.
“I heard a noise, and I got up. I didn’t walk in here. I just peeked, and she was lying here,” Hamilton recalled of the late-night crash. “She said, ‘I’m all right, mother. I’m all right, mother.”
Walker ultimately died of her injuries.
The driver of the Mercedes, later identified as 28-year-old Anthony Gates, ran off and escaped.
According to an arrest warrant affidavit, three witnesses provided San Antonio police investigators with a description of Gates.
Gates was arrested on other charges Tuesday in Victoria County. However, he also had a warrant out for his arrest in connection with the crash that killed Walker.
He will likely be brought back to Bexar County to face that charge here.
“That’s good that they got him,” Hamilton said Thursday morning. “I know God is going to fix everything, and I can’t worry like that.”
The 86-year-old says Walker was an almost constant companion to her.
Hamilton said that although her daughter had an apartment of her own, she often spent time cooking for her in her home.
Relatives have helped with the physical damage, making repairs to the areas of her home affected by the car.
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