MILWAUKEE — It has been nearly two months since a man was hit by a car at 27th and Layton Ave. while crossing the street.
He survived, but police are still searching for the driver.
Mikey now hopes something positive can come from this.
“Being awake through the whole thing and remembering everything that pretty much happened. It’s a feeling of anger and relief at the same time,” said Mikey.
Mikey does not want us to use his last name because the driver who hit him is still on the street.
January 8 was a typical Sunday for Mikey. He was headed to watch the Green Bay Packers. He used a crosswalk and attempted to cross Layton Ave., headed north.
“I crossed the street, started crossing the street, a couple feet into cross the street towards the second lane on this side, that’s when at the last second I lifted my head up and saw the grill of the Jeep. I remember flying in the air, I want to say 10-15 feet,” Mikey told the I-Team.
A police report obtained by the I-Team shares little details about what happened but does show two other people who saw Mikey get hit.
Mikey says other drivers in the area ran to help him.
“I’m blessed for sure. With everything that’s going on in the world you wouldn’t think that there’s people that would do that,” said Mikey.
Mikey was in the hospital for four days. Medical records show the three main ligaments in his knee (ACL, MCL, and PCL) and his meniscus were all torn.
He says his road to recovery has been a painful journey.
“I just pushed myself to start walking on it slowly and I was able to go from not being able to walk, needing a nurse to hold me in the hospital when I was walking around with crutches, to being able to squat again,” said Mikey.
Hit-and-runs involving pedestrians are becoming more prevalent in Milwaukee.
Numbers from the Milwaukee Police Department (MPD) show more than 380 pedestrians have been victims of a hit and run since Jan. 2021. That includes 22 through Feb. of this year.
Mikey says it’s hard to see an end in sight when it comes to reckless driving.
“It's hard to think of solutions for it when as you go on with your life and day-by-day it just seems like it gets worse every day. Accountability. It all starts with the people driving the car,” said Mikey.
Mikey hopes the driver who hit him turns themselves in, but he’s keeping a bright outlook as he works to come out of a dark situation.
“Honestly, I forgive them. Like I said, I have myself to make myself a better person. Just the fact that I wouldn't do anything like that to somebody else. And if I was in that situation, I'd stop and know I'm a better person at the end of the day,” said Mikey.
Mikey has surgery to repair his left knee scheduled for April.
MPD continues to seek an unknown suspect. Anyone with any information is asked to contact Milwaukee Police at (414) 935-7360, or to remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at (414)224-Tips or P3 Tips.
