The family of the woman killed in a hit-and-run on Mission Street in Santa Barbara last week has identified her as Mercedes Perez, 22.

In a GoFundMe posted by Alfredo Perez Wednesday night, her family described her as someone who “had so many dreams, plans, and beautiful moments still ahead of her.”

Perez was “so young,” Alfredo Perez wrote.

“Her unexpected passing has left a deep void in our lives and a pain that is difficult to put into words. Those of us who had the privilege of knowing and loving her will forever carry her memory in our hearts.”

The family launched the GoFundMe to cover Perez’s funeral expenses. The fundraiser has brought in more than $24,000 of its $20,000 goal as of Thursday afternoon.

“Her smile, her presence, and the memories we shared with her will remain in our hearts forever,” Alfredo Perez wrote. “Thank you for standing with us during this difficult time, for your generosity, and for helping us honor Mercedes’s memory.”

The Santa Barbara County Coroner’s Bureau had not released the hit-run victim’s name to Noozhawk as of Thursday.

Emergency crews responded to the Highway 101 northbound on-ramp at Mission Street at around 10:10 p.m. on Friday for a report of a vehicle that had hit a pedestrian.

The pedestrian was hit by a white Mercedes-Benz C43 while crossing the crosswalk in front of the ramp on Mission Street, Santa Barbara police said.

Santa Barbara City Fire Department Battalion Chief Cory Cloud initially identified the pedestrian as a 23-year-old woman and said she suffered critical injuries.

An American Medical Response ambulance transported her to Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital, where she was declared deceased, Cloud.

The driver fled the scene.

California Highway Patrol Officer Jonathan Gutierrez said Leticia Parra De Gastelum, 45, was arrested in Santa Barbara in connection with the incident “within hours” of the crash.

Parra De Gastelum was no longer in jail custody as of Thursday afternoon.

The Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office confirmed Thursday the case was still under review. The CHP is the investigating agency for this incident.

A District Attorney’s Office representative said Parra de Gastelum had been released from custody while the CHP conducts further investigation. No criminal charges had been filed in this crash as of Thursday.

About a minute before this fatal crash, Santa Barbara Police Lt. Antonio Montojo said an officer had attempted to pull over a vehicle that was driving recklessly on the 300 block of W. Carrillo Street.

The driver fled, and the officer “elected not to pursue and discontinued the attempted traffic stop” due to the “dangerous manner in which the vehicle was being operated,” Montojo said.

That same officer was flagged down at Mission Street because a pedestrian had been hit by a vehicle, he said.

“Officers determined the vehicle involved in the hit and run collision was the same vehicle that had fled from the officer during the earlier attempted traffic stop,” he said.

Part of Mission Street and Highway 101 ramps in the area were shut down for several hours after the collision.