Man says street racer slammed into his vehicle day after 73-year-old was killed

A person whose SUV was smashed after an alleged street racer slammed into him is calling for more action following the death of a 73-year-old woman and her dog last week.

DALLAS - A person whose SUV was smashed after an alleged street racer slammed into him is calling for more action following the death of a 73-year-old woman and her dog last week.

Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia told upset residents that his department is doing all it can to combat the problem. Dallas City Councilwoman Paula Blackmon says the city needs to engineer changes.

Driver Gilbert Leal is thankful he is alive after, he says, a street racer hit him head on at the intersection of Buckner and Samuel Boulevards in southeast Dallas.

"Headed to gym in the protected turn lane and two cars barreling down a wet road lost traction and headed right for me head on," Leal said. "If it was two feet over I might not be here."

While Dallas police have made headway at stopping more publicized street takeovers, it is the spontaneous racing that continues to put lives at risk.

Leal’s accident happened barely a day after Linda Pearson was killed walking her dog across Ferguson Road in the afternoon. Leal says he wants to see more police enforcement.

Garcia told frustrated residents by Zoom Thursday night that the department has issued 6,800 citations for street racing this year.

"We certainly are not going to cite or arrest our way out of this issue," the chief said.

Garcia said that it is going to take more legislation as well as engineering to bring racing to an end.

"There are engineerings that won’t interrupt the flow of traffic but still make these intersections less attractive for lawlessness," Garcia said.

One option -- bumps in the road, like what is being tested on Ross Avenue in downtown Dallas.

"There will be some noise generated from them," said Gus Khankarli, Director of Transportation, Dallas.

DPD Maj. Danny Williams admitted it is difficult to get ahead of the problem, even with tools like decoy cars.

"We have to be reactive because there are so many speeding locations," Williams said.

Staffing is also a challenge.

"We’ve got 27 motor officers for the entire city of Dallas," said Ofc. Mark Villareal. "We cannot be everywhere all the time."

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Police say both suspects are in their teens. They say one is already in custody and the other will be arrested soon.