Fairfield police say 10-year-old hit-and-run victim has ‘a chance to come home in the next week or two’

Mahayla Lester is recovering at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center after being struck in a hit-and-run accident on Feb. 4. PROVIDED

Mahayla Lester is recovering at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center after being struck in a hit-and-run accident on Feb. 4. PROVIDED

The 10-year-old girl who was struck in a hit-and-run accident on Southgate Boulevard earlier this month may be leaving the hospital this month.

Fairfield police Officer Doug Day said that according to reports Mahayla Lester of Fairfield might be released from Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center by the end of the month after sustaining a broken leg and fractured skull.

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“She’s doing better,” Day said. “She’s got a chance to come home in the next week or two.”

Investigators are trying to figure out who owns the “sporty white vehicle with dark tinted windows” and blue lights — which were either covers or aftermarket LED lights — coming off the back of the vehicle.

“The car is distinctive enough that somebody knows that car,” Day said.

But nothing has panned out thus far.

Mahayla Lester and her 13-year-old brother were crossing Southgate Boulevard from Kroger around 6:15 p.m. on Feb. 4 when she was struck. Day said they were both crossing the road at the same time, and while her brother committed to crossing, Mahayla hesitated.

Mahayla’s body flipped over the top of the car and landed in a gutter. They were about 500 feet from their home, police said.

Day said investigators just “want to talk” with the driver of the car. They may have thought they hit an animal, and not a 10-year-old girl, he said.

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Fairfield West elementary principal Missy Muller told our news partner WCPO-TV that Mahayla’s fifth-grade classmates have made stacks of get-well cards.

“The kids miss her,” she told WCPO. “They want her back. they are hoping somebody will call if they saw something, or at least the person will come forward and admit what they did.”

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