• 02
  • February
    2011

Five years ago, David Van Voorhis' son Jerry was killed by a hit-and-run driver as he was trying to walk across North Memorial Parkway. The driver responsible for Jerry's wrongful death was never caught.

Now Van Voorhis has lung cancer, and he needs to understand what happened that night.

"I'd like to see closure," he told the Huntsville Times. "That way, in case I do go, I would have at least tried to finish this. I'm not going to give up."

In an effort to get that closure, Van Voorhis recently increased the $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person who caused the fatal accident. The reward is being offered through Crime Stoppers. If you have information about the case, you can call Huntsville Area Crime Stoppers at 256-53-CRIME or the Huntsville Police's Major Crimes Unit at 256-213-4500. You can remain anonymous.

February 1, 2006 hit-and-run accident took the life of a young father

On the night of the fatal accident, 19-year-old Jerry Van Voorhis, the father of two young children, was trying to cross the street to get to a convenience store. As he was walking across North Memorial Parkway, he was hit by a northbound car, which never stopped.

A single clue was left behind: a side-view mirror that was sheared off the car by the impact of the car accident. Huntsville police say the mirror came from a maroon Ford Taurus or Mercury Sable.

"Somebody knows something," Van Voorhis says. "I just figured by raising the reward up a little bit, maybe we can get somebody to talk.

"I could forgive the person, but I just want them to come out in the open."

Van Voorhis recently called Madison County District Attorney Rob Broussard to make sure the case of the fatal pedestrian accident that took Jerry's life is not being shelved. According to the Huntsville Times, the case is currently assigned to the Major Crimes Unit, although it has been a while since they've received a tip.

"It's never closed when it comes to a death investigation," said Sergeant Mark Roberts on Monday. "It just becomes inactive until we have new leads to go on."

As the Times pointed out, Jerry Van Voorhis is not the only victim of a fatal hit-and-run accident whose case remains unsolved. 33-year-old Kyle Anthony Dilk was killed on New Year's Eve by a hit-and-run driver near the intersection of Hobbs Road and Chunn Road.

David Van Voorhis says he is prepared to pay more than $10,000 for information about his son's wrongful death, but he declined to say how much.

If you have information about the fatal accident that took the life of Jerry Van Voorhis or Kyle Anthony Dilk, please call Huntsville Area Crime Stoppers at 256-53-CRIME or the Huntsville Police's Major Crimes Unit at 256-213-4500. Again, callers can remain anonymous.

Source: The Huntsville Times, "Five years later, grieving father still trying to bring hit-and-run driver to justice," Steve Doyle, February 1, 2011