Prosecutor Shocks Court: Asks for ‘Mercy’ in Case of Parents Who Let 7-Year-Old Cross Busy Street!

Sad news has emerged from North Carolina in which a couple has pleaded guilty to charges related to a fatal car crash that killed their children. The couple appeared in court and prosecutors pleaded with the judge for mercy.

31 year old Samuele Jenkins and 30 year old Jessica Ivey are the parents of six children. These six children include a 7 year old Legend who died in a car accident while crossing a busy street in Gastonia on May 27.

After investigating the death of the 7 year old boy, police charged the children’s parents with felony child neglect, felony involuntary manslaughter, and misdemeanor child neglect. According to the Gastonia Police Department, Samuele and Jessica allowed their 7-year-old son and 10-year-old son to cross the street “unsupervised” to get food at a Subway location.

Prosecutor Joshua Warner said that “7-year-old Legend was hit by a 76-year-old driver in a Jeep Cherokee when his brother tried to push him out of the way.”

The driver who struck 7-year-old Legend has not been charged. The driver has been fully investigated.

Despite the prosecutors’ charges against both parents, Warner told the court, “I stand here with a heavy heart and can’t image the grief they are experiencing.” After explaining that the 10-year-old boy witnessed his brother’s death after trying to pull him out of the way of the vehicle at the last second, Warner added, “Those children need their parents.”

District Attorney Travis Page went even further, stating, “There is no prison or punishment worse than a parent living with the knowledge their decision-making and their actions caused the harm of their own child. These parents do not deserve prison—they need mercy, they need grace, and they need a community to support them and other struggling parents in hopes that a tragedy such as this will never happen again.”

The parents of the 7-year-old legend were convicted of negligent child abuse and given a suspended sentence of 19 to 32 months and three years of probation. Samuele Jenkins said in court- “All I got to say is, long live Legend.”