VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Elliott Boddie doesn't remember much before he woke up at Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital.
"From the time I got hit then to the hospital, I don't remember nothing," Boddie said to 13News Now.
In the early morning hours of September 1, a white sedan struck Boddie and drove off from the parking lot outside of Stooges Bar and Grill in Virginia Beach, off of Timberlake Drive.
Virginia Beach police officers later caught up to the suspected driver, Grant Hensley, at his home before taking him into custody. Court records show Hensley faces three charges: felony hit and run, felony malicious wounding, and driving under the influence.
Security footage from Stooges shows the white sedan speeding back and forth, in and out of the camera frame, from the security lens behind the counter.
"He only had one drink here, paid for one drink," said bar owner Christopher White, who noted his EMS-trained staff helped Boddie until an ambulance arrived.
Boddie, a Hampton Roads chef who works at the Tupelo Honey in Virginia Beach, said that he doesn't harbor anger from the incident, only sadness that he's had to put his culinary career on pause.
He's currently recovering from 11 stitches to the back of his head, stitches to his chin, broken bones, and a torn ACL.
"To this day right now, I've got to have a positive attitude, the more I see my family I'm like, 'Thank you.' When I see my kids they're more worried than I am,'" he said. "I'm alive, God had a purpose for me."
Allegations of racial slurs
Court documents reveal witness claims that Hensley allegedly used racial slurs in the moments leading up to hitting Boddie.
According to a recount of the night from a bail determination sheet, Hensley told law enforcement that he was trying to get away from an altercation when he got in his car, and then told officers someone "walked in front of his car." He later said it "was their fault they got hit."
Witnesses claimed Hensley called the African-American bar patrons racial slurs and continued to use them in the parking lot.
According to one witness, it was their opinion Hensley acted deliberately and on purpose based on how he "was doing circles in the parking lot, veering toward him."
Hensley later told law enforcement at the jail "I removed the threat from my path," and that he had no intention of calling the police to report the accident when asked.
Hensley was charged with aggravated assault. On Aug. 26, 2024, he was sentenced to 10 years in prison with five years suspended.