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17-Year-Old Charged In Fatal St. Paul Hit-And-Run

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – A 17-year-old driver has been charged in a hit-and-run crash that killed a young mother.

The Ramsey County Attorney's Office charged the teen with criminal vehicular homicide. According to the criminal complaint, the driver "panicked after he hit her and was scared."

Taressa Wilson-Snyder, 22, died from injuries she suffered after being struck by a car. Early Saturday morning around 2:30 a.m., she was found severely injured in the eastbound lanes of Maryland Avenue at Desoto, hit by a driver who left her dying in the street.

RELATED: Young Mother Killed By Hit-And-Run Driver, Police Seek Public's Help

Police examining the debris at the scene believed that the vehicle involved in the incident was a red Honda, and on Wednesday, St. Paul investigators said they identified an Odyssey van involved in the fatal crash.

According to court documents, the owner of a body shop in Maplewood called police to report a vehicle repaired the morning of March 16 – a red Honda Odyssey. Officers obtained a bumper schematic of a 2004 Honda Odyssey and say the bumper markings matched the piece of bumper recovered from the hit-and-run crash scene.

Police say the driver and his father, who owns the vehicle, agreed to speak with officers. In a statement, the teen allegedly told authorities he was involved in a different crash off Robert Street, but investigators say he later admitted he was driving the van around 2:30 a.m. on March 16.

As stated in a criminal complaint, the driver initially said he wasn't sure what he hit, but "he later admitted that he knew it was a person." The teen told investigators the person was walking on the road, but he said it was difficult to see her because she was wearing all black.

Wilson-Snyder was the mother of a little girl. She died of complications from multiple traumatic injuries due to the crash.

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