Driver, 96, Sentenced in Hit-Run Fatality

A 96-year-old man was sentenced to five years’ probation for hitting a 15-year-old girl with his car, killing her as she headed to a market for a snack.

Brian Cox must also pay restitution into a fund that will make it more difficult for elderly drivers to renew their licenses, a judge ruled this week.

Cox pleaded no contest to felony hit-and-run charges in December and has surrendered his license. His car struck Brandi Mitock on Nov. 5 and then he apparently became disoriented. He fled the scene and turned himself in to police later that day.

Superior Court Judge Bernard Kamins said he was shocked by medical reports showing Cox had been having strokes since 1992.

The teenager’s death sparked a legislative push for tougher testing of elderly drivers. Cox’s restitution will go into a trust fund to promote a bill introduced by state Sen. Tom Hayden (D-Los Angeles) that would require motorists over 75 to undergo vision and road tests to renew their licenses.

“I don’t feel that it’s too much to ask any of us that at 75--where the statistics show a significant rise in fatal collisions that are affecting the elderly more than anyone--that we take a road test to determine that we are still safe to drive,” Mark Mitock, Brandi’s father, said outside the courtroom.

The girl who was killed had stepped out of her father’s car and was crossing a street when she was struck by Cox’s car. She was on her way to a grocery store.