Grieving family accuses cops of lying after they said girl, 16, was struck and killed by deputy while lying in middle of road
Persephone Berger, 16, died after a sheriff’s deputy struck her with his vehicle on a road near Park Hills, Missouri, at about 3.43am on Saturday. Her family says they were initially told she had died in a hit-and-run and accuses officials of delaying disclosure and failing to be transparent; the sheriff’s office says the deputy did not see her.
The family says it learnt on Monday that a deputy was involved, after witnesses had raised this possibility. The sheriff’s office says it waited for a preliminary autopsy, while the Missouri State Highway Patrol is conducting an independent investigation. The deputy, aged 23, had been with the department for about three months; why Berger was unconscious in the road and her official cause and manner of death remain under investigation.
- A deputy struck and killed 16-year-old Persephone Berger.
- Her family says officials took days to disclose the deputy’s involvement.
- State investigators are examining the crash.
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A 16-year-old girl, Persephone Berger, died after being struck by a sheriff's deputy's vehicle near Park Hills, Missouri, at around 3.43am on Saturday. Her family was initially told she had died in a hit-and-run accident.
The family did not learn until Monday that a deputy was involved, after witnesses raised this possibility with authorities. They accuse officials of delaying this disclosure and failing to be transparent; the sheriff's office says it waited for preliminary autopsy results before confirming the deputy's involvement.
The 23-year-old deputy, who had been employed by the department for about three months, stated he did not see Berger lying in the road. Why she was unconscious in the road and her official cause and manner of death remain under investigation, with the Missouri State Highway Patrol conducting an independent review.
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The case for
Families have a fundamental right to know immediately what happened to their child, and police have a duty to be forthright about material facts—particularly that law enforcement was directly involved. Withholding this information whilst initially characterising the death as a hit-and-run represents a failure in transparency owed to grieving relatives and raises legitimate questions about whether the priority was supporting the family or protecting the department.
The case against
Police investigations require proper protocols before confirming details, and waiting for preliminary autopsy results to verify facts rather than releasing incomplete information is reasonable investigative practice. An independent investigation is underway with departmental cooperation; a tragic accident where a deputy could not see someone in a roadway at 3:43am does not automatically constitute misconduct, and premature disclosure might have hindered rather than served the investigation.