driver

6-Year-Old Boy Badly Hurt in NYC Bus Stop Crash That Killed His Mom

The immediate aftermath of the crash was chaotic and disturbing, video showed, with people screaming and others shouting, "Don't move!"

What to Know

  • A two-car crash sent one of the vehicles over a curb in Brooklyn and into a mother and her son waiting for a bus
  • The 33-year-old mother died and her 6-year-old child was seriously injured after the crash at a bus stop in Canarsie
  • No arrests have been made and police say they are still investigating

The 6-year-old boy badly hurt when a crash sent a car screaming into the Brooklyn bus stop where he was standing with his mother, killing her, Tuesday night didn't know for hours his mom was dead, emotional relatives told News 4.

Family members who had just returned from visiting the boy, Jayvon, who was hospitalized in serious condition with a head injury, told News 4 Wednesday afternoon that doctors said the child's condition is improving and he is expected to live. 

"That poor child doesn't even know his mother is gone yet," said family member Kamille Edwards. The family planned to celebrate Jayvon's kindergarten graduation next week. 

"His mom will never see that step-up ceremony," said distraught cousin Sheneka Edwards. "She won't see it." 

"We cannot even begin to tell him that he will never see his mom," she said. 

By the time relatives and community members showed up at a vigil for the mom and son Wednesday night, Jayvon's grandmother Claudette Edwards -- who witnessed the crash and yanked him back out of the path of one of the cars -- said she was finally able to talk to him. 

"I said, 'Do you want to home home?' And he said, 'I want to come to your house because Mommy is dead and I can't come home with Mommy no more,'" said Edwards. 

Jayvon and his mother, Shaena Sinclair, had been standing at a bus stop in Canarsie around 8:45 p.m. the night before when cops say two cars crashed in front of Remsen and Seaview avenues, sending one of the cars over the curb. The car that jumped the curb ended up smashing into 33-year-old Shayna Sinclair and her young son Jayvon. Sinclair was pronounced dead at a hospital a short time later.

They lived only a few houses away from the scene.

A witness shared video of the chaotic immediate aftermath of the crash. People were screaming; others were shouting, "Don't move!" An SUV sat in the middle of the road while a white car was on the sidewalk, partly through a fence.

Family members credit Jayvon's grandmother with pulling him out of the way at the last moment, perhaps saving his life. 

The drivers of both cars, a 61-year-old and a 21-year-old, stayed at the scene. The younger driver had a green light and was making a left turn when the older driver, who also had a green light, hit the turning vehicle, police said. 

No arrests have been made and police say they are still investigating. It's not clear if speed was a factor in the accident, but people who live in the area describe the accident scene as a dangerous intersection. 

"It has to stop. They speed even with a cop writing tickets, they don't care," said Canarsie resident Michael Thomas. 

There have been no fatalities at that intersection since at least 2012. The serious injury data is only reconciled through 2016, and there was one single severe injury at this location from 2012 to 2016.

This location would not qualify for speed cameras under current state law, both because of distance from a school and time of crash, transportation department officials say. Speed humps also aren't feasible on either street of the intersection, as they are both bus routes, according to a DOT spokesperson.

The officials say though it's a top priority of the city and its Department of Transportation to renew and expand the speed camera program, and they will study the location for additional potential safety enhancements. 

The community has planned a vigil for Wednesday night. 

Contact Us