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Help Sought to Find Hit-and-Run Driver Who Killed Former Homecoming Queen

A mother pleaded for help Tuesday to find the hit-and-run driver who fatally struck her daughter, a former Upland High School homecoming queen, as the city offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to her killer.

Health issues make it hard for Marilyn Pretzer to stand and walk. But on Tuesday, she found the strength for her daughter, Kristen, 47, who died while crossing an Upland street on March 30.

"It's unbelievable," she said. "It's unbelievable that this could even happen."

Kristen, who was homeless, was crossing Mountain Avenue in a crosswalk with her dog Honey Dew when she was struck. Honey Dew survived.

"When the driver failed to stop and render aid or call 911 they became a murderer," said Johnnie Young, her brother.

Investigators checked dozens of surveillance cameras, but haven't found any footage of the driver's vehicle, described by Upland Police Chief Brian Johnson as a 2012 to 2015 Honda Accord. Police found fragments of the vehicle in the roadway.

Family and friends said before Kristen ended up living on the streets she was the 1984 homecoming queen at Upland High School. She had four children and a granddaughter born two weeks before the crash.

"It's really hard to enjoy being a new mom knowing that my own mom had a tragic accident happen to her," said Kassidy Fierro.

Her mother said if she has enough strength to stand up for her daughter, the driver should have enough strength to do what is right.

"They know in their heart what they did," Pretzer said. "And they need to do is come forward."

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