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10-year-old hit, dragged by elderly driver in West Roxbury

BOSTON (MyFoxBoston.com) - With chipped teeth, a sprained ankle and road rash all over her body, 10-year-old Roslindale resident, Alex Nicholls, knew she was lucky to be alive, as she played with her Barbie dolls in her wheelchair at Children's Hospital.
An elderly driver hit Alex while she was with her father in the parking lot of Roche Brothers in West Roxbury early Saturday evening.
"Me and my dad were holding hands and walking back to the car with all the groceries," Alex told FOX25 in her hospital room on Monday. "Then there was a car, and then I got hit."
Alex's father, Jason Nicholls, screamed at the driver and chased him with the help of several bystanders.

"My daughter's head was pinned under the transmission, and he drove at least 10 to 15 more feet with her while we were trying to get him to stop," Nicholls said. "Nothing else can compare to the agony of hearing your daughter scream, 'Daddy,' while there's a guy driving down the street with her under the vehicle."

The driver was an 87-year-old man who told Boston police he suddenly saw people in front of his car and realized he had hit someone, according to the police report.
Nicholls believes he should not have been on the road.
"He had no idea what had happened, and didn't even look like he knew even where he was," Nicholls said. "He was a foot and a half away from me and I was screaming for him to stop, and he just kept coming."
A man believed to be an off-duty firefighter reached into the car and turned it off, while other bystanders helped Nicholls lift the car off his daughter. Boston police officers and firefighters quickly arrived and treated Alex, while making her smile and comforting her father.
"You could see the look of concern on their faces, and I just can't say enough about them," Nicholls said. "I'm just thankful to have her still alive and have it turn out this way."
Alex, too, thanked her doctors and nurses at Children's, as well as her "hero" first responders. 
"Thank you for everything," said Alex, who was expected to be discharged with crutches on Monday. "I'm very grateful."
Alex's father said he hopes her story effects change. He would like to see new state restrictions for elderly drivers, and he urges families to have candid conversations with older loved-ones about their driving abilities.
"I don't fault him; he's an older gentleman," Nicholls said. "But it seems somebody should've been there to maybe stop him from operating a vehicle."
Boston police would not release the name of the driver and said no citations were issued at the scene and no charges were immediately filed. An auto investigator, however, is following up on the case, as is protocol in such accidents.

Medical Fitness Reporting
Health care providers and law enforcement may report operators they believe are not physically or mentally capable of safely operating a vehicle due to cognitive of functional impairment

  • May request RMV to seek medical evaluation of operator
  • Requests can't be based on operator age or solely on diagnosis of condition or impairment-it must be based on the effect either has on the ability to drive safely
    • Personal observation
    • Physical evidence
    • Law enforcement investigation