MANOR, Texas — Azucena Rodríguez is still seeking answers about how her son, 24-year-old Jesus Blas-Rodríguez, was struck and killed by a Manor police vehicle on U.S. 290, even as the police chief says investigators have found no preliminary evidence the collision was anything other than accidental. The crash happened shortly after 1 a.m. Sept. 25 near Gregg Manor Road. Manor police said Blas-Rodríguez was walking in the highway’s westbound lane when the patrol vehicle hit him. Officers began CPR and provided medical aid, but he was pronounced dead at the scene. Rodríguez said she wants to know how the officer did not see her son. “I don’t even really know what happened. I don’t have an explanation of what happened to my son or what state he was in,” she said. “But that doesn’t give you the right to run over him.” Her remarks were translated from Spanish. Police have said Blas-Rodríguez may have been intoxicated, citing officers’ report that he smelled of alcohol and that alcohol was found near the crash. His mother said she could not confirm his condition. She also speculated that the officer may have been distracted, but offered no evidence for that claim. Manor Police Chief Ryan Phipps said the Texas Rangers are leading the investigation. In an update, Phipps said Rangers had reported that their preliminary investigation found no evidence the incident was anything other than accidental. Police said the patrol car was traveling 56 mph in a 60-mph zone. The department says the officer’s dashboard camera recorded the collision, but the footage will not be released at this time. The case likely will not officially close until the Travis County Medical Examiner’s report is complete, a process that could take months. Rodríguez said she has spoken with victim-services staff from the Travis County Sheriff’s Office but remains dissatisfied with the answers she has received. “There are no words,” she said about life since her son’s death. “He had a mom. He had brothers. And he had kids of his own. I want him back. But we know there’s no turning back.” The crash occurred along a stretch of U.S. 290 where safety concerns have persisted amid frequent collisions. The Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority reported more than 2,300 crashes on the highway between State Highway 130 and State Highway 95 in 2025, including 19 fatal crashes. A separate three-vehicle collision near the same intersection killed one person the Friday before Rodríguez spoke out. Rodríguez hopes officials will reconsider the speed limit on the stretch where her son died. “We’ve seen a lot of accidents, not just regular accidents, but fatal ones,” she said. “I’m not the only one going through this. Families in the area are going through the same thing.”