Atwater teen scrambled to help neighbor struck by car. Victim’s family: “He’s a hero”

The family of a 55-year-old Atwater woman is praising a teenage neighbor who helped the woman after she was run down by a vehicle in her front yard.

No arrests have been made since Renee Botwright was struck by a car shortly before 3 a.m. Saturday in outside her home the 2600 block of Olive Avenue.

Atwater police confirmed they are investigating the incident, but did not release the victim’s name. Botwright’s family confirmed she was the victim and said she was hospitalized after the attack.

The car, described by police as a white sedan, ran over Botwright and crashed into the side of her house. At least three Latino men abandoned the car and ran from the scene, police said.

Botwright’s daughter, Ashley Botwright, said her mother suffered a concussion, a broken left leg, broken ribs and serious “road burns” on her left side.

She was in stable condition at her daughter’s home over the weekend.

A strange string of event sparked about an hour earlier when someone smashed a car window outside Botwright’s home. She and her neighbor, 13-year-old Alexander Haro, were cleaning up the glass outside when the white sedan began driving by the home.

Some of the men inside the car made obscene gestures and yelled rude comments. As the car passed another time, Botwright took a rock and threw it at the car, hitting a tire, Alexander said.

As Alexander and Botwright went back to cleaning, the car passed by again, this time swerving into the driveway and lawn and striking Botwright before crashing into the house, he said.

Several men abandoned the car and ran off, Alexander said. That’s when he started helping Botwright off the ground.

While Ashley Botwright said that her mother likely shouldn’t have thrown a rock at the car, she understands why she did it.

“Who runs someone over for that?” Ashley Botwright said.

The two neighbors eventually made it inside, and the suspects left without the car. Several people were detained in connection with the attack, but police said they still are searching for the driver. A description of the driver was not released.

“Alex is a hero,” Ashley Botwright said.

Her mother was in pain Saturday, Ashley Botwright said.

“She can’t walk, she can’t sleep, and what’s more, people looked at her like this and just walked away,” Ashley Botwright said, adding that she hopes the suspects are caught and punished.

Police described the injuries as serious but not life-threatening.

Investigators also said they do not know the motive for the attack.

This story was originally published June 6, 2017 at 9:54 AM with the headline "Atwater teen scrambled to help neighbor struck by car. Victim’s family: “He’s a hero”."