Van Kills 13-Year-Old Girl While She Retrieved A Cell Phone

By Anna Deem in News on Jan 3, 2010 8:00PM

Kristina Rodriguez, 13, was crossing an intersection in Lake Zurich with another girl, 12, on Thursday when one of them dropped a cell phone. As Rodriguez leaned down to pick up the phone, she was struck by a van driven by a 60-year-old Barrington man, police said. Rodriguez died of her injuries early Saturday at Advocate Lutheran General Hospital, a spokesman for the Cook County medical examiner's office said.

The accident occurred around 6:20 p.m. on Thursday, as the two girls were crossing Rand Road at Pheasant Ridge Road after leaving a nearby shopping center, police said. The driver of the 2006 Dodge van stopped after hitting Rodriguez and has been fully cooperative with officers. Alcohol is not believed to be a factor in the crash, police said. Rodriguez was taken to Condell Hospital in Libertyville and then transferred to Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge, where was pronounced dead at 12:38 a.m., authorities said.

Her death has been ruled an accident, and no charges are expected against the driver of the van, officials said. "What a terrible way to start the new year," Lake Zurich police Sgt. Bob Johnson said to the Chicago Sun-Times. The investigation is currently ongoing.