Family of woman killed by hit-and-run driver in Cathedral City speaks out

A woman struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver in Cathedral City over the weekend was identified as Christina Barrington, 60, police announced.

The crash was first reported to police on Friday, Oct. 11 at around 12:45 a.m. in the area of East Palm Canyon Drive and Bankside Drive.

Officers arrived and found Barrington down in the roadway. Her scooter was found approximately 1,400 feet east of her, near the intersection of East Palm Canyon Drive and Cathedral Canyon Drive, police said.

The woman had significant injuries and was rushed to Desert Regional Medical Center. She was pronounced dead the next day.

“I just need to know what happened to my mom. It was just so unexpected,” Christiana Lewis, Barrington's daughter, told News Channel 3's Tori King on Monday. "She was wearing her helmet, and she was also wearing her highlighter yellow vest as well as her lights on her scooter as well."

Police said the investigation revealed that the suspect vehicle dragged the scooter after the crash while fleeing the scene.

"Through investigation it was learned the scooter was traveling eastbound East Palm Canyon Drive when another vehicle struck it from behind. Barrington was thrown from the scooter and the suspect vehicle drug the scooter a significant distance while fleeing the scene," reads a Cathedral City police news release on Tuesday.

According to Barrignton's daughter, her mother was with her dog, Busuit, at the time of the crash. The dog survived but suffered several injuries from the hit.

“For compared to the injuries that my mom had, Biscuit's, really lucky to be alive. She's missing a lot of teeth. She can't open her mouth much. I've been just giving her water and baby food, which she's able to, kind of like, slurp up. Her tongue is hanging out of her mouth, and she has a few loose teeth, and she's also, like walking like she's limping,” Lewis said.

Cathedral City traffic investigators located the suspect vehicle Tuesday in Rancho Mirage. A suspect has been tentatively identified, police said. There was no word on whether the suspect was taken into custody.

Barrington's family said doing everything they can to piece together her final moments. After her mother’s death, Lewis said she found Barrington’s journal, along with several entries that said Barrington feared for her life.  The discovery makes Lewis wonder whether the hit-and-run was an accident or not.

“There's so many things that are running through my mind. I don't know exactly, you know, I want us. I hope it's an accident, but part of me just feels like feels like it's not,” Lewis said.

Christiana says she won’t rest until her mother’s killer is found and held accountable. 

"I still want to be looking out for a lawyer. I did find some journals, like I said of my mom, that she was just stating she feared for her life. She was being harassed by her manager and her neighbors. I want every phone call that my mom has made to the Cathedral City Police Department, and I want to know what was done about it and I'm not going to stop until I get justice for my mom," Lewis said.

Anyone with information regarding the hit-and-run collision is asked to contact the Cathedral City Traffic Bureau / Officer Felix at 760-770-0343 or email at afelix@cathedralcity.gov.

A GoFundMe page has been set up by Barrignton's loved ones. Click here to make a donation.

Stay with News Channel 3 for continuing updates.