The parents of a young North Carolina boy have been charged after the child was hit by a car while walking home from the grocery store, despite the fact that the driver of the vehicle was not arrested.
Legend Jenkins, 7, was struck by a Jeep and killed on May 27 in Gastonia, North Carolina, while walking home from a Food Lion store two blocks away from his house with his 10-year-old brother. The two children were not accompanied by an adult.
His parents, Jessica Ivey and Samuele Jenkins, were charged with involuntary manslaughter following their son's death. The children had reportedly been with their mother at home and asked to meet their father at the store, to which their mother agreed, reported the Gaston Gazette.
While crossing a four-lane road at a crosswalk, Legend stepped into traffic while his older brother attempted to hold him back. The other child had been on the phone with their father when the incident occurred.
"I heard my oldest son yell, 'Legend, no!' so I hung up and ran. I just ran to find them," Jenkins told local television station WSOC-TV.
Two days after the incident, local police arrested Legend's parents, who are now being held on a bond of $1.5 million. The driver, who is 76 years old, has not been charged with a crime.
"There is no evidence of speeding or wrongdoing on the part of the driver, therefore no charges have been filed. The driver continues to be cooperative and the incident remains under active investigation by the Gastonia Police Department's Traffic Division," Gastonia Police said in a statement obtained by the outlet.
