NC - Legend Jenkins, 7, walking home with his 10 yo brother, hit by a car & killed, parents charged with invol manslaughter, Gastonia, 27 May 2025

[Indy_ar]

This is such a crazy situation. Obviously there is much more to the situation than has been reported, but I have been searching ever since I first heard about it and have t found anything.

Possibilities that I can think of think of that might result in this type of charges:

Previous incidents with children left unattended? (Although I don’t consider it to be unattended if an older sibling was supervising)

Previous CPS investigation

But in this case no evidence of any of the above.

The parents story not matching up with their statements, like being in a different place than they stated at the time of the incident

Definitely shaking my head about this one.

Did the parents make statements about their location contrary to their story? I did not catch that up. Based on one of the news articles previously posted, I understood that the kids went to the store with mom and they asked to go back home alone while she continued shopping. She let them do it for the first time that day.

 

[LenaOdenthal]

As the kids were on the phone with Dad, maybe law enforcement sees this as him also endorsing their solo run rather than preventing it. The phone may have ended up being more of a distraction than an aid in keeping them safe, unfortunately. The dad may have thought talking them through it was a kind of supervision.

As children develop at different rates, there is no fixed age that can be applied across the board when particular tasks can be undertaken independently. It's not an open and shut case.

However, the driver killed the child. The police believe she didn't exceed the speed limit - but is that the only factor contributing to safe driving in a mixed-use area with shops on one side of the road and homes on the other?

Children and pedestrians are the most vulnerable road users and it is an absolutely classic hazard that you train for when learning to drive (speaking from personal experience, having learned to drive in Europe): you must always be alert for: a child, whose safety is all of our responsibility, suddenly entering the road.

We don't learn, and practise as such, "Oh well, kids are solely their parents' responsiblilty so who cares if they enter the road".

Therefore, when something happens, it is at least curious when 100% of the fault is found with the people who did not kill the child.

 

[IceIce9]

Apparently the boy darted out in front of the driver and she wasn’t able to avoid hitting him.

Parents of 7-year-old killed while walking home from store charged for leaving him unattended

The North Carolina parents of a 7-year-old who was fatally struck by a car were charged with involuntary manslaughter for letting him and his brother walk home alone.

nypost.com

A witness to the deadly crash, Summer Williams, said the boy was hit after darting out into the street as his brother tried to hold him back. She immediately stopped her car and held the dying boy in her arms.

 

[IceIce9]

The mom said it was the first time she had let her children cross that street alone, "and someone killed him."

She accused the SUV driver of "taking somebody's baby - she doesn't need to be out here driving."

Parents arrested for letting boy, 7, walk home 'unattended' before he died

A MOM and dad have been arrested after their 7-year-son was fatally struck by an SUV while walking home “unattended” from a store. They were charged with involuntary manslaughter after …

www.the-sun.com

 

[Gemmie]

Hmmmm... Sounds like placing the blame on others. I read upthread where the kid darted into traffic. A darting pedestrian struck by a car isn't the fault of the driver.

Ivey added that she wanted "justice for my baby" against the driver, whose name has not been publicly released.

"I just don't feel like she should still be able to drive," Ivey told WSOC.

Parents charged with manslaughter after their 7-year-old son fatally struck by car in North Carolina

The child was attempting to cross the street outside of a crosswalk with another boy when he was struck by a Jeep Cherokee, police said.

abcnews.go.com

 

[Gemmie]

I wonder if there is a larger situation involving this couple totally unrelated to their son's death and LE have used this child's death to get the couple charged and into custody to investigate some larger alleged criminal situation?

Like we've all seen it play out on other threads, someone is suspected of a serious crime and LE pick them up on a lesser crime and now that they are being held authorities can take their time building the bigger case?

That's what I've been wondering. Cuz a $1.5M bond is a LOT of money for something like what we know of this case. It just feels like what we know is the tip of the iceberg. What else I'm wondering is were they known by LE for other things. Cuz something sure doesn't feel right about a $1.5M bond for an accident.

 

[IceIce9]

Hmmmm... Sounds like placing the blame on others. I read upthread where the kid darted into traffic. A darting pedestrian struck by a car isn't the fault of the driver.

Ivey added that she wanted "justice for my baby" against the driver, whose name has not been publicly released.

"I just don't feel like she should still be able to drive," Ivey told WSOC.

Parents charged with manslaughter after their 7-year-old son fatally struck by car in North Carolina

The child was attempting to cross the street outside of a crosswalk with another boy when he was struck by a Jeep Cherokee, police said.

abcnews.go.com

My thoughts exactly. I feel bad for the driver.

 

[Gemmie]

The parents were hit with a $1.5 million bond, the highest possible, and denied permission to attend their son's funeral.

“While the Gastonia Police Department offers its deepest sympathies to the family for the heartbreaking loss of their child, the investigation revealed that the children involved were unsupervised at the time the boy stepped into traffic,” the department said in a statement obtained by the New York Post. “In such cases, adults must be held accountable for their responsibilities to ensure a safe environment for their children.”

MSN

Not surprisingly the NY Post got the bail amount wrong. What's 1 zero? lol It's "only" $150K, not $1.5M bond. That answers why we thought it was so high!

Inmate Summary - Jenkins, Samuele Alexio Treyvan

 

[Gemmie]

And looks like the Treyvan has had problems with LE in the recent past.

Inmate Summary - Jenkins, Samuele Alexio Treyvan

 

[Gemmie]

Mom doesn't appear to have a prior record, at least in Gastonia.

Inmate Summary - Ivey, Jessica Marie

 

[Angelcat13]

My thoughts exactly. I feel bad for the driver.

My grandfather (maternal) was a pedestrian that was hit/killed by a car. I didn't know him very well (he was estranged from the family since my mom was little) but it was still very sad for EVERYONE involved. It was a dark, rainy night and my grandfather stepped off of the curb into the street and was killed. We will never know if he just wasn't paying attention or if it was intentional, but I have always felt so bad for the driver because he has to live with this for the rest of his life. The driver stopped and stayed on location and there was no indication that he did anything wrong and he was never charged with anything. I have always hoped that he was able to find peace.

 

[louvillian08]

A 7-year-old's parents were arrested after he was killed by a car. Now they're speaking out from jail.

Samuele Jenkins’ and Jessica Ivey’s cases raise complex questions of parental culpability and how his checkered arrest record could influence the severity of charges.

www.nbcnews.com

"Jenkins and Ivey, who is pregnant, were handcuffed two days after their son was killed. "You’d think they’d at least wait until after we buried our child,” Jenkins said."

 

[IceIce9]

Not surprisingly the NY Post got the bail amount wrong. What's 1 zero? lol It's "only" $150K, not $1.5M bond. That answers why we thought it was so high!

View attachment 592757

Inmate Summary - Jenkins, Samuele Alexio Treyvan

Each parent was initially held on a $1.5 million bond before it was reduced to $150,000.

A 7-year-old's parents were arrested after he was killed by a car. Now they're speaking out from jail.

Samuele Jenkins’ and Jessica Ivey’s cases raise complex questions of parental culpability and how his checkered arrest record could influence the severity of charges.

www.nbcnews.com

 

[IceIce9]

every picture I've seen of the kids shows them clean, dressed nicely, smiling

I did see a history of an assault charge for the father ... could be more, I didn't dig deeply

their fundraiser was deleted, presumably because they are charged

I'm not sure if this is in the best interests of the kids, they look so happy and their parents seem to adore them, they're grieving their brother and now without both parents?

and I do find it strange that the parents weren't allowed to go to the funeral as well ...

The parents did attend the funeral

Jenkins said he was “so depressed” that he’d be in jail on the day of the funeral. Then he learned that City Council member Cheryl Littlejohn had persuaded a judge to allow him and his wife to be temporarily released and escorted by sheriff’s deputies to say their final goodbyes to Legend in person.

A 7-year-old's parents were arrested after he was killed by a car. Now they're speaking out from jail.

Samuele Jenkins’ and Jessica Ivey’s cases raise complex questions of parental culpability and how his checkered arrest record could influence the severity of charges.

www.nbcnews.com

 

[IceIce9]

every picture I've seen of the kids shows them clean, dressed nicely, smiling

I did see a history of an assault charge for the father ... could be more, I didn't dig deeply

their fundraiser was deleted, presumably because they are charged

I'm not sure if this is in the best interests of the kids, they look so happy and their parents seem to adore them, they're grieving their brother and now without both parents?

and I do find it strange that the parents weren't allowed to go to the funeral as well ...

The parents did attend the funeral

Jenkins said he was “so depressed” that he’d be in jail on the day of the funeral. Then he learned that City Council member Cheryl Littlejohn had persuaded a judge to allow him and his wife to be temporarily released and escorted by sheriff’s deputies to say their final goodbyes to Legend in person.

A 7-year-old's parents were arrested after he was killed by a car. Now they're speaking out from jail.

Samuele Jenkins’ and Jessica Ivey’s cases raise complex questions of parental culpability and how his checkered arrest record could influence the severity of charges.

www.nbcnews.com

 

[IceIce9]

Questions over criminal charges​

Jenkins and Ivey, married for a year but together for 10, have six remaining children and one on the way.

Jenkins has struggled in the past. In 2009, he was convicted of felony aggravated assault with a deadly weapon with the intent to inflict serious injury and served around 220 days in jail, according to the Gaston County Superior Court clerk’s office. And in 2022, he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor assault with a deadly weapon with a minor present and violating a domestic violence protective order, the clerk said. He served 150 days in jail. The details and circumstances around both incidents weren’t immediately available.

Ivey has a prior misdemeanor with a suspended sentence for resisting a public officer in 2021.

A 7-year-old's parents were arrested after he was killed by a car. Now they're speaking out from jail.

Samuele Jenkins’ and Jessica Ivey’s cases raise complex questions of parental culpability and how his checkered arrest record could influence the severity of charges.

www.nbcnews.com

 

[IceIce9]

A 7-year-old's parents were arrested after he was killed by a car. Now they're speaking out from jail.

Samuele Jenkins’ and Jessica Ivey’s cases raise complex questions of parental culpability and how his checkered arrest record could influence the severity of charges.

www.nbcnews.com

"Jenkins and Ivey, who is pregnant, were handcuffed two days after their son was killed. "You’d think they’d at least wait until after we buried our child,” Jenkins said."

This is the most comprehensive article I have seen, thanks for sharing it.

The couple had six remaining children and another on the way.

 

[LadyL]

I think it's a terrible accident but I don't think the parents should be in jail. I also don't think they should be blaming the driver.

What a tragedy for all.

 

[musicaljoke]

A 7-year-old's parents were arrested after he was killed by a car. Now they're speaking out from jail.

Samuele Jenkins’ and Jessica Ivey’s cases raise complex questions of parental culpability and how his checkered arrest record could influence the severity of charges.

www.nbcnews.com

"Jenkins and Ivey, who is pregnant, were handcuffed two days after their son was killed. "You’d think they’d at least wait until after we buried our child,” Jenkins said."

I feel so bad for these parents. It's not abnormal to have kids walk a short distance from their home like that at this age. Just park a couple blocks from school as kids find their way there in the morning and see how many young ones are walking with a sibling.
It is so frustrating seeing the lawyer recommend that the parents plead guilty in a plea deal to avoid prison. But doing so, likely means that they lose their other children. The parents need a better lawyer.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

In my opinion, someone is on a power trip against these parents.

At some point, you have to let your child walk to/from a neighborhood store. Maybe the 7-year-old was a little young, but you also have to look at the parents' intent. They seem like good loving parents. I don't like that they have criminal histories, but usually children aren't removed for that. So again, you have to look at the intent behind the event that happened, which was to give the kids a bit of independence and let them feel that pride that they did it. I don't see a crime, just a tragic accident.