Teen killed in trash truck accident ID'd

SOUTHWEST PHILADELPHIA - October 8, 2010 (WPVI) -- Witnesses say it happen so fast, no one could have seen it coming.

It was just after 3:30 p.m. and students at Bartram High had just left school and were looking forward to a 3-day holiday weekend.

16-year-old Roger Stockton, a sophomore at Bartram, was out riding his bike along with a friend. Then witnesses say he wasn't paying attention to oncoming traffic while crossing the intersection at 58th Street and Elmwood Avenue was struck by a privately owned trash truck.

"And then he fell off the bike and was rolling and the truck couldn't stop," witness Nasir Brown said.

Stockton was killed instantly, leaving his family and relatives in mourning, hugging and crying just yards from the horrific accident scene.

"He had a lot of friends, he was very nice, cool, kind of that type of guy," classmate Jarrell Jackson said.

In this tragedy, there is no satisfactory explanation as to why Stockton did not see the trash truck.

"Everybody feels bad for his friends and his family," resident Richard Meeler said.

The Philadelphia Police Accident Investigation Unit continued its investigation late Friday, but at least initially, officials say it does not appear the driver of the truck will be charged with anything.

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philadelphia, pennsylvania, dann cuellar, accident, local/state

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