Woman killed after stepping in front of SUV as she tried crossing highway in Liberty
A 38-year-old Liberty woman was killed late Thursday as she tried crossing Interstate 35 just south of U.S. 69 highway, a spokeswoman for the Clay County Sheriff’s Office said.
The pedestrian was identified as Bernice Rodriguez, according to an online crash report from the Missouri Highway Patrol.
The collision occurred just after 10 p.m. Thursday along the stretch of southbound lanes of I-35 near Liberty Hospital, said Sarah Boyd, public relations manager for the sheriff’s office.
A deputy was driving through the area and came upon the crash. The driver of a Chevrolet Arcadia had stopped and told the deputy that she had hit something, but wasn’t sure what it was.
The deputy searched the area and found Rodriguez’s body lying in the median, Boyd said. Emergency crews from the Liberty police and fire departments as well as the highway patrol responded to the area.
A preliminary investigation determined that Rodriquez was trying to cross the highway and had stepped into the path of the SUV.
Southbound I-35 was closed at U.S. 69 while the crash was investigated.
