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3-Year-Old Left in a Van, Driver Arrested

CROWN HEIGHTS [CHI] — A Jewish driver was arrested this afternoon, Tuesday on Kingston Avenue after a traffic cop spotted a young girl left alone in the back of a passenger van.

A Police investigation revealed that the driver and the van make a regular daily trip from one of the outer boroughs into Crown Heights daily, and after dropping off all his passengers the driver did not notice that one girl was left behind.

An alert traffic cop peeked inside the van and spotted the little girl lying down on the back bench of the van and alerted local authorities. One passerby jumped in and broke one of the windows and unlocked the doors.

Hatzalah was called to evaluate the girl, who BH was 100% ok, while police spoke with the driver.

Turns out that the little girl usually travels with her older sister who did not go to school, and so the driver assumed she did not get in the van. The girl remained alone in the van from when it was parked at 10:00am until being spotted at around 12:00pm.

The police officers who handled the incident exercised every courtesy and were extremely accommodating in how they dealt with the incident. Police waited for the father of the girl for close to an hour, and did their best to not make the incident more unbearable than it already was.

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30 Comments

  • Observer

    I was there and was very impressed how Hatzalah handled the situation. Kol Haovod much respect

  • BH!!! The Maidele is safe!

    BH

    Kudos to the police officer,
    Sorry to the driver, chills run down my spine just reading the article.
    Is there no better way to unlock doors than smashing a window while a little 3-yr-old, kah, is inside, already petrified at being left alone,for who knew how long?

    Let’s give extra Tzedakah and thank Hashem for the miracle!

  • thank G-D is was not the summer

    Baruch Hashem the outcome was good, but very scary for what could have happened,

    I hope everyone learns from thise

  • HUH?????

    It’s interesting how there are 12 comments about the broken meter & only 3 about this lucky escape. It just shows what concerns us, doesn’t it?

  • confused

    fine the police handeled it nicely, but hello…. he left a child in a car for 2 hours alone and scared ?? isnt it his job to check his van and make sure all the kids got to where they were going ? so does this mean its ok bc it happened in ch ?? i feel sorry for the girl and worse if the parents let this incident pass like no big deal.

  • Police doing a good job

    “The police officers who handled the incident exercised every courtesy and were extremely accommodating in how they dealt with the incident. Police waited for the father of the girl for close to an hour, and did their best to not make the incident more unbearable than it already was.”

    Yeh i guess NYPD DOES get credit when it is due.

  • Thanks Police (Sorry, I know hurts)

    The Police did the right thing!!! Parents musut ALWAYS watch out for their children and NEVER leave them in harms way- EVEN on Kingston Av.

  • Concerned mom

    How awful!! I dont want to think of what this child suffered in the 2 hours she was left alone in the van. How freightened she must have been. 2 hrs for a three year old child is an eternity!! Her parents must feel terrible, I feel sorry for them. Bh she is alright. And the feeling of guilt for having left this child alone must be terrible for the driver, a fellow yid who I am sure needs the parnassa!! B’h the little girl is ok, what an unfortunate incident. Cant stop thinking about it. Hashem yaazor.

  • Let us all learn

    The child did not suffer anything, however had it happened a few months earlier or later the kid would not be alive. So we all have to learn from this, and the driver is going to get the scare he deserves.

  • me

    why does he have to be arrested? isn’t the natural consequence of extreme guilt, and all the what-if thoughts- enough of a punishment for him.

    mistakes can and do happen to everyone!

  • a diffrent prospective

    i know that it is very dangerous to leave a child in a car, but it seems that the driver had no clue that the kid was in the car,
    now it seems that this van is quite big,(like a bus), when you are driving such a big car- van, it is very easy not to see that a kid is stuck all the way in the back.
    Even though the driver should check to just be extra careful, it seems like he is used to a pattern, that the 3yr. old only comes when the older girl comes along as well.
    i think the parents should have been more responsible and let the driver know that they sent their 3 yr old in the car with them

  • So scary!

    This has happened on school buses in our community.
    My son was 4 years old and fell asleep on the way home on the bus. The driver parked and locked the bus for the night with the sleeping child in it! When my son didn’t come home on time I called school and they couldn’t find him. I realized he must be on the bus, so I sent a friend who lived near the Yeshiva to check. He broke into the bus and found my son who, B”H was still sleeping, so he wasn’t traumatized. But I sure was. My son is in his 20’s and I still shake when I remember the incident. I know at least two other mothers that had similar experiences. Whether you drive children for a living, or just travel with kids in your car, always make a habit of checking the car before you lock up.

  • to: 3. BH!!! The Maidele is safe! wrote:

    The breaking of the window was an accident i was there to testify to that. they tried to pry open a side window, but it gave way from the pressure applied to it. Anyway in an Emergency you dont start thinking should I gain entry? do you???? if there was an accident you dont tell the driver in the car just wait i have to call Shmira/Shomrim right?????!!!!!
    only GOOD NEWS!!! B”H

  • Elki

    B”H, the little girl is fine. But there is absolutely NO excuse for leaving a child alone in a car. He didn’t remember? Rachmana Litzlan, how many other Jewish children had a tragic outcome because he or she didn’t remember. No driver is supposed to leave the van or bus until every child is accounted for.
    May all endings turn out happily.

  • Simcha

    I am a school bus driver in CH. After an episode a year ago (a child was left sleeping on the bus for an hour after the morning run),the school instituted a double check both AM & PM. Please!!! anybody transporting children, including car pools, DON’T RELY ON ANYBODY OR ANYTHING. CHECK THE VEHICLE EVEN IF YOU ARE SURE ALL THE KIDS GOT OFF. I speak from experience. One of my grandchildren,two weeks before his third birthday was left in a mini van by a car pool driver, for 5 hours in 90+ outside temperature . BH a tragedy was avoided because the child found 2 previously opened water bottles in the van. DON’T RELY ON MIRACLES.

  • Shmuli

    I feel bad for the driver and don’t think that this is the place to criticize him. I do think however that a lesson needs to be learned from here. Most people who transport kids do not receive great pay, and may feel that it is only a temporary and easy job. The lesson is that even if it is temporary, it cannot be seen as easy. You can never be too careful when transporting kids. Kids in a car or a school bus need TLC. The driver must ensure that the children are okay, know which kids entered the bus, and ensure that they leave the bus at the right stop and are given over into the proper care of a parent, friend or school.

  • Rivka

    This can and deos happen to the most loving responsible parents.

    As a safety precaution make a habit of leaveing a valuable object (cellphone, handbag) in the back seat so you do not forget any children.

  • bh

    no 19, but it helps remember!

    THis is a major miracle–baruch Hashem! At the same time, let this be an impt reminder. And let’s not bash the driver–it really can happen to any human! Rachmonus on him…

    There was a similar story with different results, also invovling frum family and driver…with lehavdil very tragic ending…

    moshiach now

  • sorry 2 say...

    I am very sorry 2 say but….It hurts my hart everytime I c or hear that someone leaves a child in the car even if it is a 1 of us…look what happened a couple of years ago in Lakewood!!! WAKE UP PPL, DO U CARE ABOUT YOUR CHILD OR 2 GIVE YOURSELF A COUPLE MINUTES W/ NOT 2 BOTHER 2 TAKE YOUR CHILD W/ U!!!!!!!

  • to 5

    now, look at how many comments there are. you probably read this article one of the first…

  • momk

    That’s what Rivka, #18, was talking about. She gave the helpful hint of always leaving something in the back seat with the child that you habitually take out of the car.

  • Elki

    Rivka, I took it for granted that you were being sarcastic. Please don’t tell me you meant that comment as real advice.

  • menachem

    mmmmm. i don’t know what to say about the driver and the whole situation, i’m nobody to judge him, i’m not standing on his shoes and don’t want to be. i’m sure he has being transporting those children for a period of time and never happened this to him before, that makes him a responsible and trustable person till the moment that this happened. he didn’t leave the child in a car in purpose. so don’t judge him, this could happen to anyone of us!!!!! thanks hashem the girl if fine and may this be a lesson for all of us to be more careful on all what we do.

  • Scary, But Hashem does run the world!

    I am usually much like the people scolding the driver and on the side of Gevurah. However I just want to share a story that happened to me a few years back. A few days before this incident happened I was thinking to myself how much I absolutely adore my little boy who was about a year old at the time. Then we had a kids program at an amusement park and upon arrival left the car thinking my wife will take the baby out, my wife I guess thought the same thing and we LEFT THE BABY IN THE CAR! About 35 minutes later I went back to the car to get something and heard him crying! My heart almost stopped and to this day I tremble when I think about it. It was very hot outside and he was all wet with Shvitz. I took him out and held him for a very long time after giving him some water to drink. Ever since then I am much, much more careful. However it is possible to happen and be careful when you are too judgmental. Don’t ask to be tested, trust me.

  • Concerned mom

    to 28 READ THE ARTICLE – this van comes in from an outerborough, sometimes it takes more than an hour to get to Brooklyn. Stop judging!
    to 24 the sister Toby. YOU ARE NOT TO BLAME! Chas vesholom! It is not your fault, it is hashgacha protis that you were sick that day. That is what hashem wanted. You are no doubt a special girl who takes care of her younger sister every day! No one is judging my dear maidel.