El Paso father recalls hit-and-run that left his young son hospitalized

Jace Contreras, 4, is lying in a bed on the ninth floor of the Children’s Hospital in El Paso. But he is far from alone. He is surrounded by his family, get-well balloons and a zoo of stuffed animals.

His body is bruised and broken, but he is out of the intensive care unit.

On Sunday, Jacob Contreras treated his son Jace to some dessert from an ice cream truck. Seconds later tragedy struck. Jace took a step onto the street to head home, but did not see the SUV heading his way.

El Paso police believe the driver of a 2003 to 2006 black or dark blue Nissan Armada hit Jace, but did not stop to help. Instead, witnesses say the driver sped away from the scene.

“When he got hit I thought he was dead. It was so intense. I have never seen anything like that. And I get replays in my head.
Like a loop,” Contreras said.

The hit-and-run happened on the 9400 block of Ariel Rico Court in El Paso’s Lower Valley.

Jace was rushed to a hospital. Both of his legs were broken and he had suffered a skull fracture.

“The truck came really fast. He didn’t even bother to stop. He just kept on going,” said neighbor Janessa Jacquez.

Investigators are still looking for the driver who hit Jace.

“I just want to find him already, that’s all I want. What he did to my son, that is super serious and I am going to find him. We are going to find him,” Contreras said. “He hurt what is precious to me. That’s my pride and joy and he kept driving off like a coward. I would have respected him as a man if he got out of the car, but he didn’t.

New numbers from the El Paso Police Department show there were nearly 5,000 hit-and-run collisions throughout the city last year. About 1,600 hit-and-run crashes have already been reported this year.

As Jace continues to recover, his parents are thankful for the support they are receiving — especially from strangers.

“People are sending me their prayers, their love and everything. Prayers from all walks of religion, I don’t care what it was, we felt it. We felt like we were hugged the whole time, someone was like it is going to be OK,” Contreras said.

According to state law, if a person flees the scene and the person they hit dies, it could be classified as a second-degree felony, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

If you have any information that may help police in the investigation, please call the department at 915-832-4400.

For a link to the GoFundMe account, click here.