Pedestrian Killed In North Austin Identified

AUSTIN, TX — Police on Thursday identified the pedestrian who was struck and killed a week ago while crossing across five traffic lanes in North Austin.

The incident occurred on Thursday, Nov. 14, just after 8:30 p.m. along the 1100 block of East 51st St. Police said a 2017, white Jeep Wrangler was traveling eastbound on the inside lane of the street when it struck a pedestrian trying to cross the roadway.

The pedestrian, Rachelle Velin Covey, 48, was attempting to cross five lanes of traffic in an area that is dimly lit, police said. The driver of the vehicle stayed on the scene to cooperate with a police investigation, and is not expected to face charges.

Covey was transported to Dell Seton Medical Center at the University of Texas where she died later that evening as a result of his injuries.

Police urge anyone with information regarding this case to call detectives at (512) 974-4278. Tips also can be submitted by downloading Austin PD’s free mobile app on iPhone and Android.

The incident marked Austin’s 72nd fatal traffic crash of 2019, resulting in 74 fatalities this year. At this time in 2018, police added, there were 66 fatal traffic crashes and 67 traffic fatalities.