A 9-year-old boy struck by a driver in a car outside of his school in Southeast Washington in December died Thursday.

       Kaidyn Green had been permanently paralyzed from the neck down and recently returned home to his family after months in the hospital and rehabilitation, family attorney Keith Watters said in a news release. His family and friends had hosted a “welcome home party” for him.

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       “He was an exceptionally good-hearted child who always smiled despite his critical medical condition,” Watters said in the release.

       Driver strikes child leaving school in Congress Heights

       On Dec. 10, Kaidyn was struck and critically injured in the 3300 block of Wheeler Road SE while leaving KIPP DC Honor Academy in the Congress Heights area to be picked up by a parent or guardian, according to police and a school spokesman. Kaidyn died at home, Watters said.

       After the crash, the city deployed more crossing guards to that area and added two traffic cameras.

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       Brianna Burch, a spokeswoman for D.C. police, said that the case remains under investigation and that police are working with prosecutors in the U.S. attorney’s office “to determine if charges are applicable” against the driver. The driver has not been identified. At the time of the crash, police said the driver stopped and was cooperating with the investigation. They said Kaidyn was not in a crosswalk.

       The crash outside of KIPP came as a number of other children were hit by drivers, raising alarm among parents and neighborhood leaders who have pushed for more improved road safety. The area where Kaidyn was struck was also two blocks from where two children and a parent were hit weeks earlier. The District ended 2021 with a 14-year high in traffic fatalities.

       Peter Hermann and Luz Lazo contributed to this report.