A Houston mother is pleading for answers after her daughter, Antoinette Johnson, was fatally struck by a vehicle last Thursday on Almeda Road near Holmes Road.
Police say the hit-and-run incident may have involved two vehicles, both of which fled the scene.
Now, as she prepares for the unimaginable task of burying her child, Carolyn Johnson, who is also battling cancer, says she will not rest until justice is served.
She Didn’t Deserve This
Speaking with ABC 13 Houston, Carolyn Johnson broke down in tears as she recalled the moment she was told her daughter was gone.
“I got a phone call from my husband,” she said. “I was on my way to physical therapy, and he said, ‘Antoinette is gone.’ And I said, ‘Gone where?’ He said, ‘She’s not here.’”
Police say Antoinette Johnson fell out of the bed of a pickup truck early Thursday morning, July 10, and was then struck by another vehicle. Both the truck and the second vehicle left the scene, and she was later pronounced dead at the hospital.
Witnesses reported that Johnson may have been standing or dancing in the back of the truck before the fall.
While her mother acknowledged that Antoinette may have gotten involved with the wrong crowd, she praised her daughter’s love for family and her role as a devoted mother.
“Her son is gonna go look at colleges on the fourteenth,” Johnson said. “She was supposed to go with him. She didn’t make it.”
A Mother’s Promise
Now, in the midst of her own health battle, Carolyn Johnson is determined to see justice done for her daughter.
“I have to bury my daughter and then get justice for her,” she said through tears. “But I wanna tell my baby, mama gonna get justice.”
Investigators are asking anyone who witnessed the incident or has information about the vehicles involved to come forward. No arrests have been made.
Community Demands Accountability
The case has sparked renewed concerns over reckless behavior involving pickup trucks and the dangers of passengers riding in the bed, particularly without proper safety precautions. It has also raised alarm about the lack of accountability in hit-and-run cases, especially when victims come from vulnerable or marginalized communities.
Carolyn Johnson’s story is one of strength, loss, and resilience, and her call for justice resonates deeply in a city where hit-and-run fatalities remain tragically common.
