Meicole Johnson will never forget March 2, 2026. Johnson and several family members were enjoying a sunny California day when the unthinkable happened. A driver came down the street around 11:30 a.m. and stopped to park his vehicle. Somehow, he wound up on the curb and reversed onto the sidewalk. The accident killed 2-year-old Myrah Hunter and injured two others. Now the driver, 55-year-old Lamont Ivan Russell of Long Beach, faces multiple felony charges, including driving under the influence.
According to a release from the Long Beach Police Department, officers arrived and immediately began life-saving measures on Myrah. Sadly, she succumbed to her injuries a short time later at an area hospital.
At the time of the accident, Russell “was making a turning movement when the vehicle reversed, at a high rate of speed, off the roadway and onto the sidewalk, colliding with the three pedestrians,” police noted in the release.
Johnson told KABC that the scene unfolded right in front of her eyes. “The driver came down the street, and then he tried to park, and he went up on the curb,” she recalled. “I didn’t see my daughter at first, then I seen her on top of my auntie.”
Johnson’s 45-year-old aunt and 12-year-old niece both were severely injured in the crash. The grateful aunt claims her niece saved her 10-month-old son’s life. “My niece couldn’t get off the ground. But I picked my son up, and I gave him to my sister, because my sister jumped out of the way, too,” Johnson said.
Police arrested Russell, who faces charges of felony vehicular manslaughter, felony DUI, and, misdemeanor battery, per the police release. A judge set his bond at $335,000.
Nothing will bring Myrah back. But hopefully, the justice system will come through for her family, and Russell will face an appropriate consequence.
