CHESAPEAKE, Va. — A Virginia Beach man was found guilty Tuesday of killing an 8-year-old boy with his car in Chesapeake.
Tears flowed from the eyes of family members in the courtroom. It was a relief for the loved ones of 8-year-old Forrest Hooper whose life was taken too soon last year.
The guilty verdict for Richard Humbert comes over a year after the deadly hit-and-run on South Battlefield Boulevard.
In October of 2023, police say they found a boy, Forrest Hooper, seriously injured after being hit by a car. Hooper was taken to the hospital where he died from his injuries.
Two days later, police arrested Humbert and charged him with felony hit-and-run resulting in death.
Court documents say Humbert did not stop after hitting the child, but did pull over later to check his car for damage. He told detectives he thought he hit a deer.
Tuesday night a jury found him guilty of hit and run causing serious injury or death.
Forrest's grandma Cindy Lutz says she’ll sleep soundly tonight for the first time in a long time
"It was difficult you just never know what to expect you don't know how a jury is going to react it was stressful very stressful but I'm happy with the verdict I will sleep tonight," said Lutz.
Watch previous coverage: Man accused of killing Chesapeake child in hit & run 'thought he hit a deer'
Watch previous coverage: Mistrial declared in man charged in hit & run death of 8-year-old Chesapeake boy
The case was declared a mistrial in September after prosecutors said jurors improperly researched and discussed it outside of the courtroom.
News 3 had a crew in court during today's trial. This article will be updated accordingly with more information.
