He was supposed to be spending the weekend in Atlanta at a baby shower for his wife. Instead, Quentis Bentley was forced to plan a funeral for his high school sweetheart.
Ke’Anna Shields Bentley, 21, was at a bus stop Thursday afternoon when she was struck by a driver that ran a stop sign, according to police. Bentley, who was due to give birth June 29, and her unborn baby died at the scene, near the intersection of Pryor Road and Amal Drive.
Investigators believe Eddie Haynie, 57, was driving a 2003 Toyota Tundra northbound on Pryor Road when he failed to stop at the stop sign at Amal Drive, according to Officer Kim Jones with Atlanta police. Haynie struck a 2002 Chevrolet Suburban and kept going, Jones said, running off the road and striking Bentley as she stood on the sidewalk.
Haynie, who was injured after crashing his pickup truck, was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital. The crash remained under investigation Saturday, and no criminal charges had been filed.
Bentley had been headed to the United Medical and Business Institute in East Point to pick up her cap and gown, her mother said. Her husband, a member of the Navy stationed in Texas, had planned to return to Atlanta this weekend and again when his daughter, already named Za’Riyah, was born. Instead, he was granted an emergency leave until June 14, his father said.
Saturday night, dozens of family members and friends gathered on the sidewalk where Ke'Anna died for a candlelight vigil. A Go Fund Me page was created to assist the family. Funeral arrangements were pending, according to Willie Watkins Funeral Home.
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