Families of Cranford teens killed in hit-and-run demand justice

Families of Cranford teens killed in hit-and-run demand justice

The families of Maria Niotis and Isabella Salas, the two girls killed in Cranford, N.J., earlier this week, are demanding justice. On Thursday, they urged prosecutors, neighbors and the community not to dismiss the case as an accident but to recognize it as "murder in the first degree."

CRANFORD, NJ - The families of Maria Niotis and Isabella Salas, the two girls killed in Cranford, N.J., earlier this week, are demanding justice. They say the driver who struck them should be held fully accountable for what they call a premeditated act of violence.

On Thursday, they urged prosecutors, neighbors and the community not to dismiss the case as an accident but to recognize it as "murder in the first degree."

Speaking at a press conference Thursday night, Maria Niotis' mother said that Maria wasn't just her daughter—she was her best friend. 

Families mourn teen girls after hit-and-run

FOX 5 NY's Richard Giacovas reports live after the mother of one of the teen girls in Cranford, NJ who was killed in a hit-and-run speaks to the public.

"[She was] the kind of girl who could walk into a room and light it up just by being herself," she said. "She had a laugh that could soften the hardest days, and a heart that cared deeply for everyone around her." 

"Maria believed in making people feel beautiful," she added. "When she talked about her dream of becoming a makeup artist, it wasn't just about glam. It was about helping people see the beauty in themselves that maybe they had forgotten." 

Niotis' mother said losing her daughter has been "a silence that echoes louder than anything" she's ever heard. She said that her life "may have been cut short, but that it was powerful." 

"I will miss you every single day for the rest of my life," she added.  

What happened in Cranford? 

The backstory:

Both girls were struck and killed while riding their bikes on Burnside Avenue Monday night. They were both 17. 

Cranford community mourns teen girls killed in hit-and-run

On Tuesday night, more than 500 people gathered at a growing memorial on Burnside Avenue, where grief and outrage spilled into the open.

The families have said this was no accident, calling it "murder in the first degree." 

In a statement released Wednesday, the families called the driver "a coward of a man" and accused him of "plotting this attack against Maria for months." 

"(He) carried out this horrific act, taking not only her life but also Isabella’s. He is not insane, he is competent and meditated," the statement read. 

Residents say suspect was stalking the teen

What they're saying:

The 17-year-old driver accused of hitting the girls has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder, according to prosecutors. 

Residents and neighbors allege the suspect had been stalking one of the victims for months, parking outside her home, contacting her online and showing up near school.

Officials say the crash happened just after 5:30 p.m. on Sept. 29. 

Police say a black Jeep Compass SUV struck the teens with such force they were thrown more than 100 feet. The SUV dragged one of the bikes until it became disabled about half a mile away, where police arrested the driver.

Neighbors’ frustrations have fueled outrage, with many asking why repeated warnings about the suspect’s behavior were "never taken seriously."

More than 500 people attended a vigil on Tuesday night, filling Burnside Avenue with flowers, candles and tears.

"We don’t want to bury our children. Our children are to bury us," one mother in attendance said through tears, offering condolences not only to the victims’ families but also to the suspect’s parents.