Residents want change where girl died

HOUSTON [SIGN UP: Get headlines and breaking news sent to you]

________________________________________
A fund has been created at the Cy-Fair Federal Credit Union in memory of Nicole Lalime to help the family with funeral expenses. Information on the fund
________________________________________

Friday night, just a day and a half before /*Nicole Lalime*/'s funeral, people who live in her neighborhood want change.

From her home's porch, Linda Tongate, a resident in the neighborhood has seen many cars travel down the street going too fast in her opinion.

"They'll hit that first stop sign and they're gone, they don't even slow down," she told us.

Tongate lives just homes away from where Lalime, an eighth-grader this year at Bleyl Middle School, was killed. Police say she had just gotten off the school bus feet away from her home when suspected drunk driver John Winne, 30, ran a stop sign, striking a school bus and then her.

Tongate says an accident like this was bound to happen.

The Cypress Forest Homeowners Association says it has complained to the county, but there hasn't been a response. Now in the wake of the accident, it is prepared for a new fight.Next week the association will begin collecting names on a petition asking that the county install speed bumps in the neighborhood, lower the speed limit and put more officers on patrol.

"A family here lost their most precious thing and all of us are thinking what if," said civic association president Mary Stauffer.

The county says it hasn't received a request to study Cypress Forest at Lynn Drive where the accident took place. However it does have studies going on at:

Cypresswood @ East Cypress Forest
Cypresswood @ North Cypress Forest
Cypresswood @ Balcrest

The county says those studies began last year and are still pending. Officials say the county has a policy against recommending speed bumps but will look at each case individually.

The constable's office is doing a study of the intersection. It will track citations for the next 30 days to see what can be done.

We learned that Nicole's older sister had a baby Friday night and was named after the eighth grader.

The neighbors of the Lalime family also raised funds for the family.

      Headline check | 100 most recent local stories | News alerts
            Slideshow archive | ABC13 wireless | Help solve crimes
Copyright © 2024 KTRK-TV. All Rights Reserved.