'Heartless': Search continues for driver in hit-and-run that left young boy injured in Capitol Heights

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, Md. - The parents of a young boy struck and seriously injured in a hit-and-run in his Prince George's County neighborhood three weeks ago are speaking out, hoping police will track down and arrest the driver of the SUV that sped off after running down a child.

The young victim was at home with his mother and father in Oxon Hill when FOX 5 spoke to the family Wednesday.  

After weeks in the hospital, it appears that little Denim Smith is going to be ok but his parents say it was touch and go for a while there. 

The collision occurred at the corner of Doppler Street and Balboa Avenue in Capitol Heights around 7:30 p.m. on May 27, as Smith was just out having some fun on Memorial Day. 

The driver of the SUV that hit Smith took off and so far, hasn't been caught.

Smith just got out of the hospital Tuesday, three weeks after the devastating accident.

FOX 5 spoke to his mom and dad, Tajae Jones and Brian Smith, about the harrowing experience. 

"As far as like his energy, his temperament, he’s kind of the same kid that we always had," Brian Smith said.

A house at the corner of the intersection had a camera that was able to record the collision. The video is hard to watch. FOX 5 isn't sharing the full video.

It shows the little boy riding down a hill on his scooter toward the intersection as a silver SUV pulls up. The car does not stop at the stop sign, and plows into Smith, sending him flying several feet. The driver briefly slows down, then takes off as Brian Smith and other family members rush to the young boy’s side.

Warning: Some viewers may find these photos disturbing. 

"It was so loud it sounded like a car accident. It was so loud. I’m not sure if they tried to hit the brakes fast or what. I don't know. But they came through the stop sign and hit him and he was on the scooter," Smith’s father said. "So, maybe the scooter was the noise that made it sound like it was two cars that had collided but it was him riding his scooter."

Smith was gathered with family members that evening, celebrating the holiday at an outdoor party at the corner of the street. There are no sidewalks and Smith was in the street riding his scooter when he was struck by the SUV, described as a silver Nissan.  

The little boy suffered broken ribs and a fractured skull. He’s spent the past three weeks at Children's National and MedStar National Rehabilitation Hospital.

"That person is real heartless the fact that they didn’t stop or even, you know, see what they hit or what happened. That’s the hard part," mom Tajae Jones said. "Not knowing actually who it was and like, why?"

Neighbors on that block say they're upset, mainly because of the way people drive on their streets.

"They zoom through here using it as a cut-through between Marlboro Pioke and Central Avenue," one neighbor said. 

"They need one-way streets here," another told FOX 5. "You have kids playing all over this neighborhood."

Capitol Heights Police are hoping somebody will recognize this car again said to be a silver Nissan SUV and give their investigators a call.