Driver Who Fatally Struck Baby in Stroller Was Looking at Phone, Witness Told Police

The man driving the SUV that fatally struck a 5-month-old baby and injured his mother while they were crossing an intersection in Landsdowne, Virginia, appeared to be looking at his phone, according to search warrant documents.

The mother was pushing her son in a stroller in a crosswalk on Riverside Parkway after dropping another child off at school when they were hit just after 8:15 a.m. Wednesday, a Loudoun County Sheriff's Department spokesman said.

A teenager who was driving behind the Jeep SUV told police he could see the driver was "holding a phone in his left hand as if he was watching or reading something," the documents say.

The witness also said the Jeep was tailgating the vehicle in front of him and it appeared the driver was trying to get ahead of the mother with the stroller, speeding up fast as if to go in front of her. As the woman crossed with her baby, the "walk" sign was illuminated, according to the witness.

After the SUV struck them, the witness said the driver pulled onto a grassy shoulder area and crouched next to his vehicle.

When police arrived to the scene, the driver's lawyer was there and told investigators the driver would not provide a statement.

Police obtained a search warrant for the driver's two cellphones after the driver and his attorney refused to hand them over, the search warrant states.

News4 has learned the driver has hired a lawyer who is not the same attorney who met him at the scene. The lawyer declined to comment.

Law enforcement sources told News4 authorities will likely make a decision regarding charges sometime next week.

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