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Stroller-Pushing Mom Hit by DePaul Student on North Clark Street

By Paul Biasco | October 16, 2012 3:39pm | Updated on October 18, 2012 11:09am
 A driver struck a woman who was pushing her young son in a stroller while crossing an intersection in the 2400 block of North Clark Street on Monday.
A driver struck a woman who was pushing her young son in a stroller while crossing an intersection in the 2400 block of North Clark Street on Monday.
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DNAinfo/Paul Biasco

LINCOLN PARK — A DePaul student who hit a woman and sent her young son flying out of his stroller as they crossed Clark Street Monday afternoon was hit with a citation for driving without insurance, police said.

Police said Gurveer Raju, 21, of Hoffman Estates hit the pair at about 11:45 a.m. while they were crossing in the 2400 block of North Clark Street.

The crash catapulted the young boy out of the stroller, and left the boy's mother writhing on the ground in pain, said Sean Tehrani, the owner of Basil Leaf Cafe.

Tehrani said the driver stopped the vehicle and was out of the car when he came outside.

"He was devastated, looking at the kid," Tehrani said. "He didn't know what to do."

Police and an ambulance arrived at the scene about five minutes after the crash.

The mother was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital while the boy was taken to Lurie Children's Hospital, according to a Chicago Police Media Affairs spokesperson.

Tehrani said both the mother and boy were conscious and seemed to be in fair condition, although it appeared the mother may have had a broken leg.

"Her knee was double the normal size," Tehrani said.

Police said Raju was cited for striking a pedestrian in the roadway and for driving without insurance.

Tehrani said the yellow yield-to-pedestrian sign in the middle of the intersection had been removed about three weeks ago, but was put back in place last week.

He said he crossed the street at that intersection about 30 times a day between his two restaurants and had noticed that cars had been stopping much more frequently since the city installed yield-to-pedestrian signs.

"You still have to be cautious, though. They don't always stop," Tehrani said. "If anyone gets hit, it should have been me."