Skateboarder struck by hit-run driver in Santa Rosa still in ICU

A 20-year-old skateboarder struck by a hit-and-run driver remained in an intensive care unit Friday at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, where members of his large family were taking turns staying by his side and hoping the driver might come forward.

David Crowhurst of Gulf Breeze, Fla., had gone out to skateboard with his brothers and a sister early Thursday in the neighborhood along St. Francis Road off Highway 12, where he grew up until his family moved away about a decade ago, said his oldest brother, Joshua Crowhurst, 25, of Santa Rosa.

At about 1 a.m. Thursday, Crowhurst was taking a final turn skateboarding down the long driveway of the Bethlehem Lutheran Church on a longboard when he was struck by the car as he crossed St. Francis Road at El Encanto Drive.

Crowhurst hit the windshield and was thrown over the vehicle, but “the car didn’t slow down, it just sped off,” Joshua Crowhurst said.

All he saw was a dark-colored four-door sedan heading south.

Crowhurst’s brother said he tried to keep him awake until paramedics arrived.

“I thought I was going to lose my little brother right there on the corner,” Joshua Crowhurst said.

His brother’s injuries are extensive, with broken bones from his head to his hands, and brain swelling that his family prayed would quickly subside. Joshua Crowhurst said his brother can respond to them by squeezing a hand.

“He’s moving fingers, but we’re not out of the woods,” Joshua Crowhurst said.

Crowhurst is a student at Pensacola State University, where he is studying to become a physical therapist and plays lacrosse. He graduated from high school in Gulf Breeze last year and is the youngest of five siblings and the son of Stacey and Tim Crowhurst, a Santa Rosa High School graduate.

Anyone with information about the collision is asked to call Santa Rosa Police Officer Mike Mieger at 543-3636.

Crowhurst’s family has started a fund to help with medical expenses atgofundme.com/david08062015.

You can reach Staff Writer Julie Johnson at 521-5220 or julie.johnson@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @jjpressdem.