CRESTVIEW — The community is mourning the death of a 17-year-old after a motorist struck her Tuesday morning.
Valerie Michelle Camacho, a Crestview High School senior, had gone out for a run on PJ Adams Parkway about 5 a.m. Her father reported her missing after she did not return.
The alleged driver, 31-year-old Michael B. Stanfill Jr., knew he hit something near the north side of the overpass and got out to look, according to preliminary information released by the Crestview Police Department.
Keep reading for how you can help the Camacho family>>
"He hit something he thought was a deer or a bear," Assistant Chief Rick Brown said. "He couldn’t find anything."
Stanhill continued down the road until he saw a Florida Highway Patrol trooper backing out of his yard. Stanhill stopped the trooper and said he thought he hit something. The two went back to the area to search and a second trooper joined them, but they didn't find anything, Brown said.
Later, police found Valerie in a ditch along Antioch Road on the south side of the overpass.
Sacred Heart Hospital staffers in Pensacola pronounced Valerie dead at 5:30 a.m. Thursday.
Now, purple ribbons adorn mailboxes, utility poles and street signs throughout the Whitehurst Lane neighborhood near Antioch Elementary School. Purple was Valerie's favorite color, a friend said.
And the community is in shock.
"She’s just a great kid," CHS Principal Dexter Day said. "One of our honor students."
"I will think about her when I jog from here on," Scott Howard said on the News Bulletin's Facebook page.
"So sad for someone so young losing their life … prayers for the parents and siblings," Janet Williams said.
"Such a devastatingly sad situation. My prayers for her family," Kimberly Moreno said.
The Crestview Police traffic investigation is ongoing under Lt. Jamie Grant's command. No further information is available at this time.
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Friends encourage residents to send meals to the Camacho family as they grieve the loss of Valerie, a 17-year-old Crestview resident who died Thursday after a motorist struck her during a Tuesday morning jog. Want to help? You can sign up here.
Northwest Florida Daily News staff writers Trista Pruett and Katie Tammen contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Mourning Valerie: 'She's just a great kid,' CHS principal says