Fairfax County Police say the driver has been cited for reckless driving.
TYSONS, Va. — A woman has been cited for reckless driving after crashing into the American Girl doll store at Tysons Corner and injuring a wheelchair user Wednesday afternoon, according to police.
Briana told WUSA9 Thursday night that they are grateful to be alive but anxious about what comes next. “Another six inches (closer), there would have been a much worse problem,” they said.
“I have no control. I was born with CP (cerebral palsy),” Briana said, explaining that they rely on a motorized wheelchair. “It’s my legs, it is my lifeline. If I don’t have a functional chair, I can’t safely leave my home,” they said.
Briana said they had been shopping for a present for their domestic partner when the crash happened. “I started walking out and next thing I know a car’s in my leg,” they said. “I just started screaming, ‘I just got hit by a car, there’s a car in my leg.’ My leg hurt.”
Police said the driver went around a stopped vehicle without checking for oncoming traffic, hit another car, and then accelerated toward the storefront, striking Briana in their wheelchair before smashing into the building.
Briana said they suffered a concussion when asked how they were feeling, they expressed pain.
“Honestly, my leg hurts,” they said. At the hospital, they said staff were “picking cement out of my hair. There was cement all over my clothes. They had to cut my jeans off.”
Their customized wheelchair was also badly damaged. “This chair is specifically customized for me,” Briana said, adding that “these chairs cost about as much as a Cadillac.”
They’re worried about how they’ll get around while the chair is being repaired and how the setback will affect their workload as a Ph.D. candidate.
“What am I gonna do for months?” they said.
Briana said they are thankful for the people from the store who rushed to help, as well as first responders, but still struggle to understand the crash.
“I’m trying to wrap my brain around, how did I get hit by a car on the sidewalk?” they said.
Police confirmed the driver has been cited for reckless driving. Briana said the driver “never said a word” to them.