Girl struck by car in Maryland recovering in hospital; man facing charges for assaulting driver

A St. Mary's County man is facing assault charges after investigators said he attacked a driver who accidentally struck a 10-year-old girl.

It happened in Lexington Park after the girl ran out from behind an ice cream truck, officials said. Both the girl and the driver ended up in the hospital.

Just after 3 p.m. Wednesday, the 10-year old girl was buying candy from an ice cream truck parked on Yorktown Road. According to St. Mary's County Sheriff's Office, the young girl darted out from behind the truck and was hit by a 2003 GMC Envoy driven by 72-year-old Linda Glaser. The girl ended up being pinned underneath the car.

Abdullah Mumeet said he was inside his home when he heard the collision.

"I heard a child whimpering underneath the car," he said. "I looked underneath the car and saw a little girl under there. I just went under there and pulled her out."

Mumeet said he then took the girl into her parents' house across the street. He did not see the assault of the driver.

"I saw the lady outside. She was sitting on the ground, asked me to help her up and I helped her up and I gave her a phone that was on the ground," said Mumeet.

"Apparently there were a lot of bystanders in the area and once the child was hit, it looks like Ms. Glaser exited her vehicle," said St. Mary's County Sheriff's Office Cpl. Julie Yingling. "She ended up being subsequently assaulted by a family member of the child. So it was a bit chaotic when we got there."

The sheriff's office said assault charges are pending against a 22-year-old family member of the young girl.

"I believe it was pushing and shoving and I believe she was pushed down to the ground on multiple occasions," said Cpl. Yingling.

Speed and alcohol were not a factor in the accident and it appears the little girl ran out from behind the ice cream truck and into the path of the car, according to the sheriff's office.

"The child was subsequently flown to a local trauma center for injuries," said Yingling.

The mother of the 10-year-old girl told FOX 5 that her daughter is in stable condition at Children's National Medical Center in Washington D.C. She said her daughter suffered two fractured bones, including one in her back, along with an abrasion to the right side of her head.

Glaser's husband told FOX 5 that his wife was going to be okay.