Chicago Mother Evelyn Modacure Seeks Justice 9 Years After Katina Runnels Killed in West Side Hit-and-Run

CHICAGO (WLS) — Nine years after her daughter was killed in a hit-and-run crash, a Chicago mother is still pressing for answers in a case that remains unresolved, despite her ongoing efforts to keep it in the public eye.

Evelyn Modacure said she has spent nearly a decade fighting for justice for her daughter, Katina Runnels, who was fatally struck by a speeding vehicle in the 4500 block of West Washington Boulevard in Chicago’s West Garfield Park neighborhood. The crash occurred on July 2, 2017, nine years ago.

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Inside Modacure’s living room, Runnels’ ashes rest in a blue-lit cabinet tucked into a corner, a daily reminder of the life taken from her. Modacure said she heard the impact from roughly a block away, shortly before a call came in from her daughter.

“She was like, ‘Mama, I’m okay, I’m on my way back to you,’ and before she got the whole sentence out, the phone dropped, and I knew at that instant,” Modacure said.

Runnels, who was 27, died soon afterward. The person behind the wheel fled the scene and has never been identified.

“I think it’s not going to be solved, but I have to do my part. I have to keep going. I have to keep calling. I have to keep her name going,” Modacure said.

To keep her daughter’s memory alive, Modacure continues to share Runnels’ name and photo on signs and T-shirts. She said that remembrance matters deeply for Runnels’ three children, who are now being raised by their grandmother.

Although Modacure fears the case may never be closed, she said she remains troubled by what she sees as limited communication from investigators.

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“They never spoke to me. The detective never spoke to me. I had to go find him,” she said.

Lance Northcutt, a personal injury attorney with Salvi, Schostok & Pritchard and a former Cook County prosecutor, said he frequently sees a lack of follow-up in fatal hit-and-run cases. He said nearly half of all pedestrian fatalities in Chicago are hit-and-run crashes.

“For cases involving death or great bodily harm, you’re talking about a clearance rate that’s a little above 9% which is less than a third of what other cities, like New York, typically have,” Northcutt said.

Northcutt attributed the low clearance rate to a lack of resources within the Chicago Police Department. He said hit-and-run crashes have reached epidemic proportions in Chicago.

For Modacure, the chances of finding the person responsible for her daughter’s death may be slim, but she said she remains committed to seeking answers.

“I need closure for her kids and for myself and you know her grandmother and everybody that loved her, because all our lives changed at that given time,” Modacure said.

Modacure said she has no plans to stop contacting police about the case. Northcutt said clearance rates are unlikely to improve unless the Chicago Police Department’s major accidents division receives additional funding and investments are made in forensic technology.