BATON ROUGE — Only grass marks the spot along North Street where 23-year-old Destin Pickett was trying to cross the road before police say he was struck by a passing pickup truck.

On Aug. 12, Pickett got off a CATS bus at that spot. Seconds later, investigators say, a 2011 Chevrolet Silverado hit him and drove away without stopping, killing Pickett.

Pickett's aunt Antoniette said the family is struggling to understand how someone could leave the scene.

“This was not a dog. It wasn't an item in the street. From what I know, the last thing that he saw was her truck.”

According to a Baton Rouge Police affidavit, officers found vehicle parts at the scene and later located the blue pickup on North 37th Street. Investigators say the damage to the truck was consistent with striking a pedestrian.

The affidavit says 47-year-old Charlotte Jones admitted she had been driving and left the scene because she was scared. Jones had never been issued a driver's license, according to the affidavit.

Pickett's aunt says leaving the scene made an already tragic situation even worse.

“It's one thing to be irresponsible, like I never obtained a driver's license. It's another thing that you have hurt another individual and felt nothing and drove off.”

Police arrested Jones and charged her with hit-and-run involving serious bodily injury and driving without a license.

Baton Rouge Police said officers respond to about 350 hit-and-run cases each month — more than 4,000 a year involving vehicles and pedestrians. Police say they solve or clear only about half of those cases.

For Pickett's family, the case is about much more than an arrest. They say he was a young man with dreams of becoming a therapist and a life still ahead of him.

“Destin was more than just my first cousin; he was my brother. Whenever we were together in public, I never introduced him as my cousin. I always called him my brother because that's what he truly was to me,” another family member said.

The two shared a deep love of music, another connection the family member says will live on. “Music will forever remind me of him and the bond we shared. Whenever I needed someone to talk to, someone to lean on, or simply someone to be there for me, Destin was always there for me.”

“His life mattered. He has so much to give to contribute to society to make us all better people," Antoinette said. "I'm a better person because I've had him in my life.”

Funeral services for Destin Pickett are scheduled for Aug. 29 at Winnfield Funeral Home. The viewing will begin at 9 a.m., followed by the funeral service at 11 a.m.