LAKELAND, FL : 12 year old accident victim may have been running away from home near Highway 98 on I-4 on Sunday, 2nd June 2019

The Florida Highway Patrol says it appears a 12-year-old who was hit and killed while trying to cross Interstate 4 was trying to run away from home.

The accident happened at 3:30 AM Sunday near Highway 98 on I-4.

The F.H.P. Says 12-year-old Tracy Logan Castner ran across the westbound side of the interstate and was hit by a Ford Focus was driven by 19-year-old Austin Walter Taylor.

Taylor stayed at the scene and cooperated with the investigation. A witness says Taylor was extremely distraught. According to Florida Highway Patrol Sergeant Steve Gaskins, Taylor had no chance to see the 12-year-old.

"We're talking about a dark roadway here, a place where pedestrians are not supposed to be, so again the driver had no chance of seeing him and even if he did see him at the last minute, very little time to react," said Gaskins.

As the F.H.P. began to investigate the accident, they learned Castner was having problems at home.

"From what we have learned so far throughout our investigation, he's had some troubles at home and also at school, difficult lifestyle sometimes and he was running away from that situation," said Gaskins.

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