A 5-year-old Oklahoma boy died after he fell off an electric rental scooter into oncoming traffic and was hit by a car.
Now, police say his mother’s “reckless” driving on the scooter caused the child’s death.
The incident occurred on April 23 when the boy’s mother, Evelyn Ortiz-Luevano, was riding a Lime motorized scooter with her son in Tulsa, according to Tulsa World.
Police said the mother was driving in and out of oncoming traffic with a “reckless disregard” for safety. The boy, Caiden Reyes-Ortiz, fell off the scooter when she swerved in order to avoid a car.
That’s when a driver, Renier S. Davison, fatally hit the child while attempting to swerve away from the scooter, KTUL reports.
Davison fled the scene and was later charged with leaving the scene of a fatal collision, causing an accident without a valid driver’s license, and driving on a suspended license.
Due to the mother’s erratic driving, she was charged with negligent homicide and child neglect. Police said they believe she has since fled to Mexico, missing her son’s funeral service on April 27.
Rental scooter company Lime only recommends that one person ride their scooters at a time for safety reasons. CEO Toby Sun said in s statement:
“As a father of a young boy myself, words cannot describe how saddened I am by this tragedy. Nothing is more sacred than our children and to the family of the victim, my heartfelt sympathies go out to you. Our Tulsa Lime team is cooperating with Tulsa law enforcement and will assist in their investigation in any way we can.”
Thanks, Mr. Rockwell the Doodle for reminding us to take a moment to paws and unleash the joy.#LimeLife
Dockless electric scooters have become popular in cities across the country in the past year, which prompted the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to study their safety.
During the study in Austin, Texas, researchers concluded that about 20 people were injured every 100,000 scooter trips. Almost half of those were head injuries, The Verge reports.
A GoFundMe campaign for Caiden’s mother has raised more than $400 so far.
