JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A neighbor is identifying the victim in a deadly hit-and-run on Vernon Road as 72-year-old Willie McClendon Jr., also known as Sonny, and is speaking out about the man she says was taken too soon.
The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said McClendon was struck Saturday, January 10, on Vernon Road between Edgewood Avenue and West 45th Street. Police say the driver fled the scene, and McClendon later died from his injuries. Detectives have released surveillance video showing a Dodge vehicle of interest and are asking for the public’s help to identify the driver.
Angelina Jenkins, a neighbor who said she grew up with McClendon, described him as a kind and community-minded man.
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“Sonny, it was a very kind person. He was very neat and organized. I grew up with Sonny. He would keep our back Canal clean,” said Jenkins.
Jenkins said McClendon frequently walked along Vernon Road to the Family Dollar and was on his way back home when the crash happened.
“And he was on his way back on that day that particular day, and we heard the sirens, and one of my neighbors informed me that there was a gentleman on the ground, and they were pumping his chest,” said Jenkins.
She said neighbors were devastated when they learned the man who was killed was McClendon.
“We were so sad to hear that it is Sonny cause Sonny was just a great person and great to the neighborhood,” said Jenkins.
Investigators have not said how long McClendon was in the roadway or whether anyone nearby saw or heard the crash. During a briefing, a Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office officer made a direct plea to the hit-and-run driver to come forward, saying it would “make it easier on them and JSO.”
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Jenkins said safety concerns along Vernon Road have been raised for years, with neighbors pleading with the city to slow down traffic in the area.
“Saturday night, Sunday night, it is crazy. They come through here. They do almost 90 miles an hour,” said Jenkins.
She said residents want immediate action before another tragedy occurs.
“So we’re trying to get speeders to just slow down on the street. It seems to be a race track, and that’s what we’re trying to stop. We have children on the street as well, and as you can see, that just passed back,” said Jenkins.
This marks Jacksonville’s fifth traffic fatality so far this year.
Neighbors said they are now asking the city to step in and help slow down drivers along Vernon Road in hopes of preventing another deadly crash.
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