A North Texas family continues searching for answers two months after a deadly hit-and-run crash in a Denton County town.
Joshua Gatlin, 21, died after he was hit in Ponder on June 25 while walking on January Lane. Police said the vehicle that struck him drove away.
"Josh was hit like an animal and left there to die like an animal," said Minnie Hennegan, Gatlin's mother.
Gatlin was found in the early morning hours.
"One day, I would like to tell my grandbaby what happened to her daddy," Hennegan said. "I don't want to be able to say, 'I don't know honey, we don't know.'"
Ponder Police Chief Robert Genova said investigators do not know details surrounding Gatlin's death.
"Many of leads have led to dead ends," he said.
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Hennegan said her son was with friends the night before he died, but no one knows why he was walking down the road.
"That is very out of character for Josh," she said.
Genova, the town's only police officer, said he is getting help investigating the hit-and-run.
"One person just couldn't do it," he said. "But with the help of the [Denton County] Sheriff's Department and Texas Rangers and others we have consulted with, we are doing all we can do with the information we are getting."
Gatlin's parents say they are hopeful someone will come forward with answers.
"Josh did not deserve this," Hennegan said. "He surely deserves justice, and someone knows something."
Anyone with information on the case should call the Ponder Police Department or Denton County Crime Stoppers.
