CRESTVIEW — Valerie Michelle Camacho, a 17-year-old jogger hit by a vehicle Sept. 16 while running alongside Antioch Road, died Thursday.
She was an honor student who loved to run and dreamed of traveling to Asia and Europe, according to a classmate. She planned to attend Florida State University and wanted to be a medical examiner, according to a close friend.
Now, an investigation into the accident continues.
City Police Chief Tony Taylor said the man believed to have struck her, Michael B. Stanfill Jr., may have hit Camacho trying to get out of the way of another driver.
“The driver says a car was approaching with its high beams on and appeared to be encroaching on his lane,” Taylor said.
Stanfill told police he believed he had run into a deer when he felt an impact with his vehicle and stopped to look.
He then found a Florida Highway Patrol officer and searched more, though, apparently mistakenly, in a location different from where the accident had taken place, Taylor said.
Camacho was jogging at the side of the road in the predawn hours when she was knocked into a ditch. Taylor said one witness reported seeing her jogging at 5:35 a.m.
He said the police investigation into Camacho’s death was “still in its infancy,” with questions answered leading to more being asked.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Investigation into teen's death 'still in its infancy'