MMA fighter Marcus Kowal's young son was killed by a hit and run driver over the holiday weekend as the child's teenage aunt pushed him in a stroller.Marcus Kowal and Mishel Eder's son, Liam Kowal, was only 15 months old. Tragically, at about 4:15 p.m. on Saturday, Eder's 15-year-old sister was pushing her nephew in a stroller when they were hit by an SUV at Hawthorne Blvd. and 133rd St. in Hawthorne, OC Register reports. The driver, 72-year-old Donna Marie Higgins, drove away from the scene, but was followed by witnesses, police said. Higgins was surrounded and detained by citizens until police arrived and arrested her. Currently, she is being held on suspicion of a hit-and-run and drunken driving, but could face additional charges.
Rescuers found the teenage girl sprawled in the crosswalk, while the baby remained in his stroller without a pulse, according to CBS Los Angeles. CPR was performed on the boy and he was placed in the ICU at a nearby hospital, but succumbed to his injuries on Sunday, according to a post on Kowal's Facebook page:
About an hour ago, our baby was declared brain dead. He tried to fight so hard. He even died at one point but they brought him back. He's a little fighter. His heart is still beating but his brain is no longer working. Our hearts are broken and there's a void in my soul but we will get through this.
Kowal and Eder decided to donate their son's organs after his death, KTLA reports, in the hopes that other children's lives might be saved.
Kowal told KTLA that Eder's sister is going through surgery, but will ultimately be okay. "She's blaming herself and of course it's not her fault," he said. "It's only one person's fault."
A GoFundMe has been set up to cover the funeral expenses and medical bills.
