Omaha woman arrested in connection with pedestrian hit-and-run

OMAHA, Neb. —

An Omaha woman was arrested on Sunday in connection to a hit-and-run involving a pedestrian from last July.

Shanel Caldwell, 51, was arrested on an outstanding warrant after a traffic stop on Sunday evening.

In July of 2025, Omaha police were called to North 20th Street near Corby Street. According to an affidavit, a pedestrian was struck by an SUV in front of B&T Liquor. Those documents detail that the SUV briefly braked before driving off.

Omaha police said the victim was taken to the hospital with critical injuries. They sustained several spine fractures requiring five surgeries, and suffered paralysis in their right arm and leg for a month as a result.

According to court filings, an SUV matching that description was spotted in front of the St. Joseph Villa Nursing Center in January. They spoke with the SUV’s owner, Caldwell, who admitted to being in the area of the collision when it occurred.

Caldwell told officers she thought she hit a city pole, but she wasn’t sure. When asked about the damage to her car, Caldwell told officers she had run into a brick wall a few months prior, requiring her to replace her mirrors, court records show.

Investigators noted in the affidavit that two days prior to those purchases, KETV NewsWatch 7 had released video of the incident as part of our Crime Stoppers segments with OPD.

They also detailed that Automated License Plate Reader data showed she was consistently seen leading up to the segment airing last August. After the segment aired, Caldwell’s SUV wasn’t seen for days before being seen with replaced mirrors.

Caldwell made her first appearance in court on Monday, where a judge set her bond at $75,000. Her preliminary hearing is scheduled for Sept. 18.

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