Missouri Deputy Struck Persephone Berger, 16, as Family Accuses Police of Misleading Them About Hit-And-Run

A Missouri family says they were initially told 16-year-old Persephone Berger had died in a hit-and-run, then learned days later directly from the sheriff's department that a deputy's vehicle had struck her. Her aunt, Kimberly Cabuchola, has questioned the initial account and the delay in notifying the family.

Berger, a student at West County High School, was pronounced dead early on 3 October on Davis Crossing Road in St. Francois County. The sheriff's department says a deputy responding to a report of an unresponsive person lying in the roadway struck her, remained at the scene and notified a supervisor.

Deputy Was Responding to Report of Person in Road

Deputies were sent at about 3.43am on 3 October to the 5400 block of Davis Crossing Road, west of Park Hills, after a caller reported an unresponsive person lying in the road. The caller stayed at the scene.

According to the sheriff's department, the approaching deputy saw the caller's vehicle with its hazard lights on near the 5300 block but did not see Berger before striking her. Investigators had not established why she was in the roadway.

Coroner Jason Coplin said Berger had suffered blunt-force injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene. He said an official cause of death could not be confirmed until further tests were completed.

According to the sheriff's department, a preliminary autopsy on 5 October found no evidence of physical injuries preceding the collision, with injuries consistent with being struck by the deputy's vehicle. Toxicology results and the final autopsy report remained pending in the reports reviewed.

Sheriff Jeffrey Crites rejected social-media claims that the deputy had been involved in a pursuit or left the scene. He said the deputy tried to manoeuvre away from Berger and remained at the location.

Crites said all indications at that stage pointed to an accident. The highway patrol's independent crash investigation had not produced a conclusion in the reporting reviewed.

Family Questions Initial Hit-and-Run Account

Cabuchola said Berger's father initially told her that his daughter had been involved in a hit-and-run and had died. She then posted on social media asking anyone with information about the crash to contact her.

People who knew about the incident subsequently told her a sheriff's deputy was involved. Cabuchola said the sheriff's department did not tell the family directly about the deputy's involvement until the afternoon of 5 October.

She questioned why the family had initially received a hit-and-run account and why the Missouri State Highway Patrol had not been brought into the case immediately.

Cabuchola said her concern was the information the family received, rather than simply the fact that a deputy had been involved. She said the collision could have been forgiven if the family had been told what happened.

Crites said he had not been present for the original notification and could not verify exactly what the family had been told.

He said the initial circumstances left open the possibility of an earlier hit-and-run. The subsequent investigation and preliminary autopsy indicated that Berger had been struck by one vehicle, the deputy's, he said.

Highway Patrol Conducts Separate Investigation

The Missouri State Highway Patrol was consulted on 4 October. Following the preliminary autopsy findings on 5 October, it was asked to conduct an independent crash investigation.

The patrol said its work included accident reconstruction and interviewing the person who discovered Berger in the roadway. The sheriff's department is separately investigating how she came to be lying in the road.

Crites said the department does not use in-car cameras. The deputy was wearing a body-worn camera, and Crites said it was his understanding that it had been activated and the footage handed to the highway patrol.

He said the deputy was about 23 years old, had been with the department for approximately three months and had prior law-enforcement experience. The deputy had not been publicly identified in the reporting reviewed.

Fire District Explains Road-Cleaning Response

Cabuchola also questioned whether the road had been cleared before state investigators arrived.

The Leadwood Fire Protection District said it was dispatched at about 3.44am on 3 October for a reported cardiac or respiratory arrest. When firefighters arrived, sheriff's deputies were already at the scene and told them they could return to service. The district said its personnel did not make contact with Berger.

According to the fire district's statement, as reported by the Daily Journal, the Leadwood Police Department contacted it at about 3.46pm on 4 October to request help washing the road after a resident expressed concern about its condition outside their home.

The district said its personnel were not involved in the investigation and were assisting at the police department's request. The reported cleaning does not, by itself, establish that evidence was improperly removed.

The family's questions about the initial notification and the handling of the scene remain separate from the highway patrol's investigation into the collision. That investigation had not reached a publicly reported conclusion in the coverage reviewed.