Woman Charged With Killing 91-Year-Old Holocaust Survivor In Hit-And-Run

Carol Kuruvilla

A 68-year-old woman was has been charged with the hit-and-run death of an elderly Holocaust survivor in Los Angeles.

Prosecutors said Joyce Bernann McKinney struck 91-year-old Gennady Bolotsky early in the morning of June 17 and didn’t stop to render aid, leaving Bolotsky lying flat on his back in the street.

The man was hospitalized and later died as a result of his injuries.

McKinney faces a charge of vehicular manslaughter, among other felony counts that could send her to jail for a maximum of 11 years, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office announced Wednesday.

The victim’s granddaughter, Adriana Bolotsky, told reporters last month that the family is angered and devastated by the death.

“We wish you had a human soul to stop and call, and not leave him lying on the ground,” she said about the then-unidentified driver.

Gennady Bolotsky, originally from Ukraine, fled Nazi occupation during World War II and came to the U.S. “to be free,” Adriana Bolotsky told KTLA 5. She described her grandfather, a widower, as a “silly” and “vivacious” man who “made everyone laugh.” A home video of Gennady Bolotsky’s 91st birthday party last year shows him dancing energetically, while friends and family cheer him on.

“He was supposed to live to 100 or more,” the victim’s son, Michael Bolotsky told ABC-affiliate KABC last month. “At 91, he had more energy than a person half his life.”

A screenshot from surveillance footage shows Gennady Bolotsky at a crosswalk at Magnolia Boulevard and Wilkinson Avenue in Los Angeles, moments before he was struck by a pickup truck.  (Photo: KCAL 9 / Screenshot)
A screenshot from surveillance footage shows Gennady Bolotsky at a crosswalk at Magnolia Boulevard and Wilkinson Avenue in Los Angeles, moments before he was struck by a pickup truck.  (Photo: KCAL 9 / Screenshot)

Security footage from the day of the hit-and-run shows Gennady Bolotsky taking his dog for an early morning walk. As he passes through a marked crosswalk, a white pickup with a camper shell barrels into him, throwing him to the ground. The truck can be seen pausing briefly before driving right over the victim’s body.

Investigators found McKinney after receiving a tip that a similar vehicle was parked near the Burbank Airport. She was arrested June 21 on unrelated outstanding warrants for battery and public nuisance. Police say the woman appeared to be living in the truck with three dogs at the time of her arrest.

McKinney remains in police custody on the previous warrants with a total bail amount of $137,500.

Adriana Bolotsky said the void left by her grandfather’s death will never be filled.

“No one deserves this, especially not my grandpa who came and survived literally everything,” the granddaughter said.

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Credit: Michael Priest for United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Credit: Michael Priest for United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Holocaust survivor shows where she was at the end of WWII. Credit: Michael Priest for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Holocaust survivor shows where she was at the end of WWII. Credit: Michael Priest for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
The Survivor is Yvonne Sokolow and the Veteran behind her is Adolph (Ralph) Panetta. Credit: Michael Priest for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
The Survivor is Yvonne Sokolow and the Veteran behind her is Adolph (Ralph) Panetta. Credit: Michael Priest for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Holocaust survivor donated documents to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum at its 20th Anniversary National Tour stop in New York on March 3, 2013. Credit: Michael Priest for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Holocaust survivor donated documents to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum at its 20th Anniversary National Tour stop in New York on March 3, 2013. Credit: Michael Priest for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s 20th Anniversary National Tour stop in New York honored local Holocaust survivors and World War II veterans. Pictured are (left to right): Brian Marcus whose grandfather was a Holocaust survivor and World War II veteran, World War II veteran Eric Hamberg, Holocaust survivor Marcelle Faust, and Rebecca Dupas (USHMM) as Marcelle Faust and Eric Hamberg receive their commemorative USHMM tribute pins. Credit: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Credit: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Credit: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
This is three generations of this man’s family, him and his wife, their sons (or inlaws) and a grandson. Credit: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
This is three generations of this man’s family, him and his wife, their sons (or inlaws) and a grandson. Credit: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
WWII Veteran. Credit: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
WWII Veteran. Credit: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
WWII veteran Rick Carrier. Credit: Michael Priest for United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
WWII veteran Rick Carrier. Credit: Michael Priest for United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Credit: Michael Priest for United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Credit: Michael Priest for United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Credit: Michael Priest for United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Credit: Michael Priest for United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Families participated in an art project, “Building Blocks of Hope,” which will collect puzzle pieces from children around the country during the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum’s 20th Anniversary National Tour. Credit: Michael Priest for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Families participated in an art project, “Building Blocks of Hope,” which will collect puzzle pieces from children around the country during the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum’s 20th Anniversary National Tour. Credit: Michael Priest for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
At the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum’s 20th Anniversary National Tour stop in New York, the ceremony honoring Holocaust survivors and WWII veterans included remarks from Senator Charles Schumer (NY). Credit: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
At the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum’s 20th Anniversary National Tour stop in New York, the ceremony honoring Holocaust survivors and WWII veterans included remarks from Senator Charles Schumer (NY). Credit: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

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This article originally appeared on HuffPost.