Teen girl died after a hit-and-run that may have been caused by a sheriff's deputy

On Saturday, March 4 at about 3:43 am, Persephone Berger, a 16-year-old from Missouri, was struck and killed by a sheriff's deputy's car while lying on the road near Park Hills, which is about 65 miles south of St. Louis. The deputy did not see her when responding to a report of an unconscious person on the street and hit Berger with his vehicle; she was pronounced dead at the scene. An autopsy revealed no pre-existing injuries but confirmed injuries consistent with being struck by a car, pending further toxicology results.

The St Francois County Sheriff's Office and the Missouri State Highway Patrol are investigating both the circumstances leading up to Berger lying on the road and the incident itself. Her family has alleged that it took several days for them to learn she was hit by the deputy's vehicle instead of in a hit-and-run, as initially reported.