The 9-year-old girl who was shown in a home surveillance video being hit by a car in her front yard is out of the hospital.
In an interview with WSB, Wednesday, LaDerihanna Holmes said she is doing physical therapy and getting home schooled about a month after a car rammed into her while she played her front yard with one of her friends.
She had some strong words for the people in the car who are accused of leaving the scene after the crash in Lithonia, Georgia.
“I feel like it was a cowardly thing to do,” she said. “You run me over, but I’m going to get better real soon.”
LaDerihanna suffered several injuries including a fractured skull and crushed pelvic bone. She is currently getting around with a wheelchair or walker, and hopes to regain use of her right leg through rehab. A GoFundMe has been set up by the girl's family attorney to help with LaDerihanna's medical expenses.
"I don't get to do the things that I usually would do, but I'm OK," she told WSB.
The driver of the car, Gabriel Fordham, 28, turned himself in days after the crash and was charged with failure to maintain lane, failure to stop at a stop sign, reckless driving, hit-and-run, and serious injury by vehicle. He remains in jail, WSB reported.
Related: Driver arrested after video shows car hitting 9-year-old girl, ramming into house
Fordham’s lawyer, Ryan Williams, said his client never meant to hit the girls and that he was trying to fight off a carjacker when the wreck occurred.
LaDerihanna's mother, Charlette Bolton, saw Fordham face-to-face in court April 15. During the preliminary hearing, Bolton looked directly at Fordham and told him, "I don't believe, not one time, that you were carjacked," according to the AJC.
A judge also disputed Fordham's account, in which he and his lawyer claimed someone came out and pointed a gun at him after the crash.
The passenger who was in the car Fordham crashed is still on the run. WSB reported that Fordham's attorney said he and his client plan to ask the judge for a new hearing.
About the Author
