The 70-year-old woman who was killed in a hit-and-run this week in Chicago's East Garfield Park neighborhood has been identified as award-winning entertainment attorney Linda Mensch.
Mensch was a board member of "A Safe Haven," an organization that works to house people in Chicago. The president and co-founder of "A Safe Haven," Neli Vazquez Rowland, issued a statement on the organization's loss Saturday.
“Linda S. Mensch was an amazing life force in her professional career as an award-winning lawyer in the music and film industry,” Rowland said. “She was also an amazing dedicated board member of A Safe Haven and champion for the cause of helping the homeless for over 12 years. As a friend, She has touched the lives of thousands of people from all walks of life and she was beloved by all. Her legacy will truly live on in the hearts and minds of all of us who knew her and were inspired by her intelligence, compassion, kindness, humor and joy.”
No funeral arrangements have been announced at this time.
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On Thursday, a black 2007 GMC Savana 1500 cargo van hit Mensch around 3:50 p.m. at Fulton Boulevard and Central Park Avenue, Chicago police said.
The driver briefly left the van but got back in and drove north, police said.
The van had Illinois White Sox license plate 11285WS. Police asked anyone with information to call the Major Accident Investigation Unit at (312) 745-4521.
