3-Year-Old Killed by Father’s Car After Sibling Accidentally Puts It in Reverse: Reports

A young child was hit and killed after she was run over by her father’s car when it was accidentally placed in reverse by her 4-year-old sibling, according to reports.

Police said the incident happened in the 6300 block in Logan Creek near Sugar Land, Texas, on May 21.

The children’s father had placed the 3-year-old and 4-year-old into the car before he ran back into the garage to quickly grab something. He had turned on the car in order to have the air conditioning while the two children waited, reported Click 2 Houston.

While waiting, the 3-year-old managed to get out of the car, while the 4-year-old climbed into the front of the car. When climbing into the front, the 4-year-old accident bumped the gear stick, which is a dial that turns, putting the car into reverse.

This caused the car to roll back and hit the 3-year-old. The father had noticed the incident and ran out to prevent it from happening, but was unable to. He and EMS tried to perform CPR on the 3-year-old but she had succumbed to her injuries, police said, reported KHOU 11.

“It’s a horrible incident for the family, the neighborhood out here, for the community,” a deputy told the news website.

The identity of the child has not yet been released.

This incident follows another accident in Massachusetts where a mother was left in a serious condition when her 9-year-old son accidentally ran her over with her car.

The child had accidentally placed the car in reverse when the 37-year-old mother from Chelmsford was unloading the car. The car started rolling backward with the child inside, striking the woman, and eventually stopped when it crashed into a wall, reported Boston 25 News.

Police said when the child accidentally shifted the gears, the mother tried to hit the brake pedal but was instead knocked down and run over by the car.

“It appears to be a very tragic and unfortunate incident where a 9-year-old child somehow ended up behind the wheel of a vehicle,” Sgt. Jason Poor of Chelmsford Police told the news website.

“The mother got caught inside the open driver’s door as the car was backing up and was knocked down by the door, and it appears from our investigation that she may have been struck by the car,” he added.

The mother sustained a head injury and is recovering in the hospital, while her son was not injured.