Mo. Mom Getting Her Master's Degree Is Killed in Crossfire During Road Rage Fight Between Others
GoFundMe
A Missouri woman is dead after she was was caught in the crossfire of a violent road rage incident.
On Monday afternoon, Kristen Whitted was driving on Interstate 170 when her car was caught in the crossfire. According to Olivette police, Calvin L. Pittman, 30, was allegedly exchanging gunfire with someone he didn't know in another vehicle while speeding on the highway. That's when Whitted was fatally struck by a stray bullet.
"This was a despicable random act of violence," Olivette Police Chief David Wolf said at a press conference Friday.
Pittman was charged with murder, unlawful use of a weapon, armed criminal action and tampering with physical evidence, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, KSDK and KMOV report. Police are still searching for the driver of the second vehicle, which is believed to be a white or silver car. Wolf said a good Samaritan stepped forward with information that helped identify one of the vehicles involved, leading to Pittman’s arrest.
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On Thursday, the day before Pittman's arrest, Whitted's family pleaded with the public to help authorities find their loved one's killer, according to the Post-Dispatch.
“This does not need to be a secret,” Whitted's brother Fred Whitted said. “Don’t let my sister’s case go cold.”
Whitted was on her way to a local park to meet a friend for a daily walk when she was killed, according to her family. She was the oldest of four children, a mother of two and a new grandmother. Before her death, Whitted was getting her Master's Degree in Computer Science through online classes.
“By anybody’s standards, we did everything right. My sister did everything right,” Fred Whitted said. “This act of aggression, this act of recklessness, of thoughtlessness, it took away my family.”
It's unclear whether Pittman has entered a plea or retained an attorney to comment on his behalf.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to pay for college expenses for Whitted's daughter.
Authorities ask anyone who was driving on I-170 between Page Boulevard and Highway 40 (Interstate 64) on Monday afternoon and may have witnessed the incident to call 314-645-3000, or call CrimeStoppers at 866-371-8477.