Detroit taxi wanted in hit-and-run of 9-year-old

DETROIT (WJBK) - A 9-year-old boy was seriously injured but still alive after nearly being killed by a Detroit cab Thursday morning while walking to school.

Coleman Tate III was walking with his brothers to school at the corner of Jefferson and Alter just before 7:30 Thursday morning. Class was about to start at Detroit Merit Academy when Tate ran across the street.

His 8 and 10 year old brothers got across the street and he was trying to catch up when the light changed. Despite the sign saying 'do not walk', Coleman made a run for it. At least three other lanes of traffic all stopped, except for the cab, in the last lane.

That's when what looks like a Checker Cab came through the intersection, hit the boy and did not stop. His father, Coleman Tate Jr., said his brothers watched the terrifying accident.

"His brothers saw the whole thing, they ran home and called me. They're pretty shook up too. Crying, they can't stop crying. It's real traumatic for a child to see something like that. It's real bad," Tate Jr. said.

Drivers in the area stayed at the scene and some even tried going after the cab, but couldn't catch him. Tate Jr. is pleading with the driver to do what is right.

"If he hit a kid and kept going he needs to be turned in. He need to turn himself in," he said.

Detroit police said they are investigating the hit-and-run but would not provide any more details. We called Checker Cab who directed us to a PR Firm.

"They can't confirm and the police hasn't been able to confirm either whether or not if it was a Checker Cab driver for sure. Checker Cab is working with the police department to identify where their drivers were at any given time during the incident and to help identify the person if it is a Checker Cab driver," Josh Hovey with Turscott and Rossman said.

Coleman went through surgery at Saint John Hospital with family by his side.

"He's pretty bad right now. He has internal bleeding in his abdomen and around his spinal cord, the bones are fractured, and his femur his femur is broken, so he's in pretty bad shape," his dad said his son is a straight A student.

The boy should be back home in a few days but there's no telling how long it will take to recover.