A $10,000 reward is now being offered in the fatal hit-and-run of Eugene Narrett, a 64 year old father who was killed Friday, December 6, 2013 around 7pm while crossing Western Avenue near Union Street in Brattleboro, Vermont. Eugene was an artist. He was showing his paintings at Gallery Walk, when his life ended in the blink of an eye. The driver who hit him was going so fast, police say Eugene was knocked right out of his shoes. He died from his injuries at the scene.
Police and investigators believe the vehicle involved was an SUV or a pickup truck which sustained significant front end damage including damage to the hood and likely the right mirror. Someone surely saw this vehicle and wondered what really happened. Someone, perhaps, unknowingly repaired it. Someone out there knows who is responsible for this crime.
To date, no one has come forward or accepted responsibility for claiming this man’s life. The victim’s son and other family members are traumatized over the sudden loss of their loved one and the fact that this case remains unsolved. Click on the link to hear from Eugene’s son directly and learn additional details from a private investigator hired to help solve this case: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPESdnZkZbE
If you have any information, please come forward. This brilliant man who was loved by many did not deserve to die in the street.
A $10,000 reward is being offered for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the hit and run driver. The family and friends of Eugene Narrett thank you for your help to solve this heartbreaking case.
The artist
Adding a comment to draw some extra attention to this.
“Someone surely saw this vehicle and wondered what really happened. Someone, perhaps, unknowingly repaired it.”
And someone was driving it. As the video says, coming forward now would show good faith; being tracked down later would not.
The private investigator suggests the person is familiar with the area, using Union Hill as a high speed cut-through. (i.e., a tourist wouldn’t have turned there…)
I gather they have the perp
I gather they have the perp on one of the downtown road-facing videocameras. Can’t they triangulate off of that to get a list of cars/people to investigate?
Cameras
Where exactly do you think these ‘downtown road-facing videocameras’ are? I don’t believe there is a municipal camera anywhere near the intersection where this accident occurred, unless perhaps there might be private cameras nearby, maybe part of someones security system. If there were, I imagine the BPD/VSP would have captured that evidence by now. VSP accident reconstruction team was there a long time that evening, I would like to believe they did everything possible to gather all relevant evidence at and around the scene.
I believe there are a number
I believe there are a number of cameras at intersections on Main St. I always assume that cameras are everywhere, whether we can see them or not. I’m sure they did their best, such a shame.
limited cam vision
The intersections have sensors to “see” the strobe light triggers of the emergency vehicles, but they aren’t taking pictures of anyone, nor are any images being stored.
To the family: we still think of Eugene when we go by that corner, which is often, as it is at the end of our street. They are about to do repairs to that corner to make it hard for this sort of thing to ever happen again. Adding a small sign with a color image of his art and a brief reminder of who he is to that corner might be a beautiful way to remind people – of what was lost and also to be careful crossing the intersection.
Assuming no photos are taken
Assuming no photos are taken of people or stored, that feels like 1990’s thinking given how just about every town in America has many cameras running 24×7. Maybe we’re that old school that there aren’t cameras in Brattleboro. A shame in this case.
Put a Stop sign there?
I’m sure the VSP and BPD do all they can for life threatening situations locally.
Yet, it is true that that intersection has a fast right turn off of Western because there’s no stop sign there (if I remember it right).
How simple is it to put one there?
I used to run across that section with real trepidation!
Blinking light?
…or a blinking red or yellow light? A 4-way stop sign or blinking light cheaper than camera stuff…
Watch what happens
All of those sorts of things were suggested as part of the upcoming renovations. The short answer for why we can’t have any of those things is “state standards,” as it is partly a state road and we depend on state money for roads. (If I were proposing Lyceums, I’d suggest: “Resolved, that it would be less expensive and more practical to forgo state highway funds.”)
That said, the planned changes will have an impact. The ability to rapidly turn off Western Ave and head down Union Hill will be greatly diminished. It will be just about a 90 degree turn and much narrower. The crosswalk will be much narrower. This should all be done in the next few months, and we can watch what happens to the intersection thereafter.