Boys, 14, hit by car wanted rainy walk

Trevor Dodd didn’t want to take the bus Monday afternoon when the final bell rang at Legacy High School in North Las Vegas.

He wanted to walk with his friend Elijah Coggins instead.

“They said they wanted to walk in the rain because the rain made them happy,” Dodd’s mother said.

Then a 21-year-old man driving south in a sedan on North Fifth Street, near East Centennial Parkway, crossed the center line and hit the two 14-year-olds, who were walking south against traffic. The boys were walking in a dirt area without a sidewalk. Coggins died at University

WALK

Medical Center. Dodd was hospitalized with serious injuries but has been released, said his mother, Cherelle Coggins, who is not related to Elijah Coggins.

Cherelle Coggins said the boys were best friends who had several classes together. Elijah Coggins helped her son through hard times, she said.

Clark County School District spokesman David Roddy said a messagewassenttoparentsoflegacy students informing them of the

incident. Counseling services were made available to students at the school Wednesday, he said.

The car’s driver cooperated with police at the scene, and police do not suspect impairment. The driver has not been charged, and the North Las Vegas Police Department has not determined the cause of the

incident.

Department spokesman Eric Leavitt said there were no signs of skid marks or sharp turns from the car.

Contact Blake Apgar at bapgar@ reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5298. Follow @blakeapgar on Twitter.