Doyle Russell was killed in a hit-and-run accident on September 25, 2024.
By JADE RUSSELL
Tribune Staff Reporter
jrussell@tribunemedia.net
THE daughter of a 55-year-old man killed in a hit-and-run accident on Madeira Street is pleading for the person responsible to come forward, saying her father did not deserve to be treated “like an animal”.
Simone Russell, 37, initially thought it was a joke when her uncle told her through a Whatsapp message on Wednesday that her father, Doyle Russell, had been hit by a car while she was at work. When she got home, her uncle called to confirm the distressing news.
A week before the incident, she had taken her father out for lunch and to visit her children. She said he was in good spirits and told her and his grandchildren that he loved them.
“I’ve told them their grandfather passed, and they all broke down into tears,” she told The Tribune. “So I had to control myself to be stronger for them because they just saw him.”
Visibly distraught, Ms Russell said she is still in shock over her father’s death.
According to police, the incident happened on Wednesday. Traffic officers said Mr Russell seemed to be lying in the eastbound lane on Madeira Street when he was struck by a red vehicle, believed to be a Ford Mustang, travelling east along the same corridor. The driver failed to remain stationary.
Mr Russell had lived on Madeira Street for ten years and was living alone at the time of his death. He made a living selling coconuts. Ms Russell said her father would sometimes visit friends in the neighbourhood, but he was always home by 9pm. His family expressed disbelief that he would be out late at night and are suspicious about why he was lying in the street.
She suspects foul play and said it was out of character for her father to be lying on the road voluntarily.
Describing her father as a free spirit, hardworking, and a devoted family man, Ms Russell said he had three adult children and five grandchildren.
She called on the driver to have a conscience and turn themselves in.
“For a person to just do something like that with no remorse, it’s like they don’t care,” she said. “He has family out here that loves him. So justice has to be served in that incident. He’s not an animal.”
Comments
whatsup 2 months, 3 weeks ago
I see a lot of CCTV cameras all over Nassau????
IslandWarrior 2 months, 3 weeks ago
Driving in Nassau has evolved into a perilous ordeal, where vehicles are increasingly wielded as instruments of recklessness in a climate of lawlessness and impunity. What should be routine acts of road safety have turned into dangerous disregard, with drivers routinely ignoring stop signs, running red lights, and cutting in front of others in a frantic attempt to gain an edge. These actions, performed without concern for the consequences, place the lives of innocent citizens at risk every day.
Our streets, once designed for order and efficiency, have now become a chaotic stage for criminal behavior, where unchecked road rage, defiance of the law, and a lack of accountability create a sense of impending disaster. We find ourselves at a juncture where drivers seem to be inviting dangerous escalation, with the potential for deadly confrontations lurking around every corner.
Adding to this troubling scenario is the behaviour of our law enforcement officials. Rather than setting an example of discipline and adherence to the rules, some members of our proud police force contribute to the disorder by misusing their emergency equipment. Using flashing lights and sirens, they cut through traffic congestion not always for an emergency but to assert their dominance over other drivers, further eroding the public’s trust.
The situation begs the question: who will be the next victim of this madness? As we stand on the precipice of escalating road violence, we are left to wonder whether those who should be protecting us are instead contributing to the very environment they are sworn to combat.
rosiepi 2 months, 3 weeks ago
I agree, but who’s going to throw over the dominoes table?
IslandWarrior 2 months, 3 weeks ago
The time for polite conversation and passive observations is over. It is not a matter of who will throw over the domino table—it is a matter of when those with the authority and responsibility will take decisive, unrelenting action. Our streets have become a battleground 'just the gunfire has not started yet', and the real question is whether we have the backbone to confront it head-on. Law enforcement must lead the charge, but if they fail to act, then it is up to the community to demand accountability. If we allow this culture of lawlessness to continue unchecked and unchallenged, we are complicit in its escalation and the loss of life that will follow.
This is not about disrupting the status quo; it’s about destroying it, breaking down the system that allows dangerous individuals to operate with impunity. Every criminal driver, including those in uniform, must be taken off the road. Vehicles should be impounded, licenses revoked (well, that is a different story), and consequences severe enough to send a clear message: lawlessness will no longer be tolerated. If we wait for someone else to take the first step, we will remain in this cycle of chaos. The time to act is now, and anything less than complete and uncompromising enforcement is unacceptable.
truetruebahamian 2 months, 3 weeks ago
We completely agree with the insight of Island Warrior and endorse the suggestions that he put forth.
SP 2 months, 3 weeks ago
The FNM's "automatic life in prison" for traffic fatalities law certainly also doesn't encourage anyone to stop and check after an accident or turn oneself in!
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