School staff to keep closer watch after pupil hit by car

Parents urged to review safety tips with their children

Police blamed the accident on pedestrian error and the driver, Raphael Baako, 21, of Upper Marlboro was not ticketed.

Mejia was hospitalized at Children’s Hospital and was released during the weekend, said a county school system representative.

Extra teachers and staff will supervise opening and dismissal for the remainder of the school year, schools spokesman Bob Mosier said.

School officials may also ask police to reposition the school’s two crossing guards, he said.

In a letter sent home with students on Oct. 11, Principal Joan Briscoe called the accident ‘‘upsetting” and urged parents and guardians to review safety tips with their children, including using crosswalks.

‘‘We try to use these experiences as teachable moments,” Mosier said.

Mosier said about a dozen pupils sought assistance from guidance counselors in response to the accident.

Mejia, whose South Paula Street home is about a half-mile from Brock Bridge, is one of about 94 children who walk to the 581-pupil school, according to the school system. The boy was struck just after 9 a.m., about 200 feet south of the crosswalk at Brock Bridge and New Sudlersville Road, said Sgt. Sara Schriver, a police spokeswoman.

Crossing guards, who are employees of the police department’s traffic safety division, are assigned to that crosswalk and one about 500 feet to the north at Brock Bridge Road and Ellen Street, Schriver said. Guards were stationed at each location at the time of the accident, Mosier said.

Baako was believed to have been obeying the posted 25-mph speed limit, while police could not say exactly how fast he was traveling.

‘‘The driver was not at fault,” said Cpl. Mark Shawkey, a police spokesman.

In a letter to parents and guardians, Briscoe praised the quick response by neighbors and the school community.

Safety tips offered in the letter, in addition to using crosswalks, included looking both ways before crossing streets, traveling in groups and minimizing distractions such as music players and cell phones.

Bond Mill Elementary School pupils in Prince George’s County heard similar tips during a Safe Kids assembly from county transportation officials on Friday.

The timing of the assembly was a coincidence, said Principal Justin Fitzgerald.

Fitzgerald said he regularly reminds parents and pupils at the West Laurel school — where about half the 650 pupils are walkers — to strictly adhere to opening and dismissal procedures.

Drivers are required to form a single line and drop off or pick up pupils at a specific point near the sidewalk.

‘‘If one person breaks from that routine, you’re putting a child’s life in danger,” Fitzgerald said.

E-mail Steve Earley atsearley@gazette.net.