A 77-year-old Bradenton woman was struck and killed in her own yard Friday afternoon while retrieving her mail, leading to the arrest of a neighbor living just blocks away.
Vicki Noon, a retired nurse, was in the yard of her home in the 5600 block of 11th Avenue West around 1:00 p.m. when a vehicle veered off the roadway and struck her. According to a Bradenton Police Department press release, the driver fled the scene immediately following the collision.
“At approximately 1 p.m., BPD responded to reports of a hit-and-run crash and located Vicki Noon, 77, deceased,” the department stated.
Witnesses described a gold sedan leaving the area, prompting authorities to canvass the neighborhood for security camera footage. A police sergeant later located a matching vehicle at a residence in the 7200 block of 13th Avenue West, which is within walking distance of the crash site.
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Police identified the driver as 40-year-old Jordan Beard. Investigators stated that Beard was at the residence and cooperated with detectives. He has been charged with DUI manslaughter, leaving the scene of a crash involving death, and tampering with evidence.
Noon was a well-known figure in the “55-and-up” community. Neighbors described her as “community-oriented,” with one resident noting, “Everybody knew her on the street.”
Her daughter, Jennifer Mulholland, expressed the family’s grief over the loss of Noon’s retirement years. “It was stolen from her,” Mulholland told WTVT. “It was stolen from my father, and it was stolen from my children, and her soon-to-be great-grandchild.”
Court records indicate Beard has since been released on bond while awaiting his next court appearance.
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