More News

Holding candles, nearly 200 friends, family, school administrators and Prince George's County officials gathered Thursday night at Crossland High School in Temple Hills to pray and share memories of a freshman student who was struck by a vehicle Sept. 1 as she was boarding a school bus near her home.

The student, Ashley Davis, 13, of Temple Hills has been hospitalized at Children's National Medical Center in Washington, D.C., since the accident. According to friends and family, Davis sustained severe brain trauma and has been in and out of consciousness.

At the vigil Thursday, for nearly two hours those who had gathered huddled together in the rain to sing songs, cry, laugh and pray that Davis pulls through.

Davis' mother, Nycole Davis, said the accident has been particularly hard for her family. At least one relative has stayed with her daughter at all times since she entered the hospital, she said.

"I'm trying to stay strong," she said, fighting back tears. "It's very encouraging [to see so many people at the vigil] — I know so many people care."

The accident occurred in Temple Hills just after 7 a.m. along the 3000 block of Brinkley Road, near two apartment complexes. According to police, Davis was crossing near an intersection to catch a school bus when a 2000 Lincoln Continental traveling in the eastbound lane struck her.

The vehicle then veered off into the westbound lane and struck a 2004 Nissan Quest minivan head-on before striking a male student near the curb who was trying to protect elementary school students from the collision. Five individuals in the two vehicles involved in the accident and the male student also sustained minor injuries, police said.

Principal Charles Thomas told the crowd he was pleased the community could pull together during a time of crisis to support Ashley Davis.

"This is a difficult thing for me, but at the same time it's a joyous thing," he said. "We work together. We celebrate together. Tonight we will pray together."

Those closest to Ashley Davis say she is an energetic teenager who always carries a smile, loves her family and enjoys dancing. She had joined Crossland's dance troupe.

Ashley Davis' best friend, Tamera Brown, 14, of Temple Hills, said she has known Davis since the two were in elementary school. She said that although Davis had attended Crossland for only a few weeks, students inside the school have been taking news of the accident hard.

"Everybody cries once and a while about it," she said.

Wanda Kennedy, a dance instructor at the school, organized the vigil. Kennedy said the Davis family fed and clothed her after she evacuated from New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina.

"I know what [the Davis family] is going through," she said.

Community leaders said the intersection where the accident occurred is of particular concern because it lacked crosswalks or signage that would indicate to drivers to slow down for pedestrians crossing the street.

School board member Linda Thornton Thomas (Dist. 4) of Temple Hills said the school board and County Council plan to urge the county's Department of Transportation to improve safety along the road.

"I believe we can make the changes that are necessary," she said.

E-mail Joshua Garner at jgarner@gazette.net.