Hit and run victim clings to life, driver still at large

ATLANTA - Wayne Bauman, 60, continues to fight for his life in the hospital, as Atlanta Police urgently search for the hit-and-run driver responsible for the gruesome crash.

Police released a lookout for a 2003 to 2005 Honda Pilot with front bumper damage and front passenger damage. Wreckage from the vehicle left at the scene helped officers identify the getaway vehicle.

The crash occurred Monday in broad daylight off Martin Luther King Jr. Drive SW near Mozley Park. Witnesses said the driver erratically swerved lanes and drove onto the sidewalk, striking Bauman and then urgently fleeing the scene.

A witness was able to snap a photo of the fleeing vehicle after it struck Bauman and fled.

Bauman was transported to Atlanta Medical Center and remains in grave condition.

"We're all devastated. He's just not waking up," sister Christine Bauman said tearfully. [He's] just the sweetest, sweetest guy, wouldn't hurt anybody...wouldn't leave anybody on the side of the road like that without helping," she said.

His sisters have posted fliers with information on a Crime Stoppers reward around the neighborhood of the crash, hoping someone with tips on the vehicle or the driver can come forward to police.

"I don't know how they sleep at night. The person who did it is afraid of being seen. I don't want it to happen again to someone else," said sister Diane Bauman.

Tipsters can contact Crime Stoppers at 404-577-TIPS; the reward is up to $2,000 for information leading to an arrest.