One Week Before One Million Kids Return to School, Driver of Dodge Ram Pickup Kills Five-Year-Old Jonathan Martinez on Dangerous Street in Queens

Drivers have killed 14 children age 17 and under in 2022, 2.3x higher than the six children killed by this point in 2021, which was the deadliest year overall since Vision Zero began

11 out of the 14 children killed in 2022 were hit by drivers of SUVs, pickups, trucks, vans, or school buses. Only three were killed by drivers of smaller cars like sedans 

Traffic crashes are the leading cause of injurious death for children under age 14 in New York City

172 people have been killed in crashes so far this year

QUEENS, NY — On Thursday evening, five-year-old Jonathan Martinez was walking home with his father and siblings from a nearby park when he was struck and killed by the driver of a Dodge Ram pickup in a hit-and-run.

This murder of a child by a reckless driver on a dangerous street happened one block from PS 127, Aerospace Magnet School, and two day care centers,  underscoring the need for immediate street safety improvements to protect the more than 1 million New York City students returning to school next week.

Statement from Transportation Alternatives Executive Director Danny Harris:

“Mayor Adams: Cars are killing a record number of children on our streets. We need you to take action now to protect our children before school starts next week.”

“Our hearts are broken for the family and friends of Jonathan Martinez and we extend our deepest condolences to them. Jonathan deserved a future, just like the 171 other New Yorkers killed in preventable crashes this year. Until we prioritize the health and safety of New Yorkers over the movement of multi-ton vehicles, drivers will continue to kill our children.”

“As over one million children head back to school, Mayor Adams and NYC DOT have a solemn responsibility to do everything in their power to protect them from traffic violence. The Adams Administration must expedite the expansion of the Open Streets for Schools program by closing roads adjacent to schools to cars. They must also prioritize areas surrounding schools for comprehensive street redesigns, just as these areas have been the focus of the speed safety camera program.”

“Just look at the intersection where Jonathan was killed. It’s a huge, confusing expanse of asphalt and begs to be designed more safely. We urge the Adams Administration to work quickly to fix this intersection — and other dangerous slip lanes like it — to prevent more deaths.”

“The health and safety of our kids depends on the actions taken now. No more studies, no more plans, no more future promises, Mayor Adams must act now to prevent future tragedies from occurring.” 

Statement from Families for Safe Streets member Raul Ampuero, whose 9-year-old son Giovanni was killed by an SUV driver in Jackson Heights in 2018:

“How many more kids need to be crushed by cars before our leaders act? In 2018, my own son was killed in the neighborhood next door. Years later, the driver of another huge car has killed a young child. When the same acts of traffic violence keep occurring, our leaders have failed. It’s time to make streets safe from cars, especially near schools. It’s time to limit the deadliest big cars on streets citywide, as Senator Hoylman’s new bill aims to achieve. Doing so will save lives and prevent the heartbreak that has touched my family and countless others New Yorkers whose loved ones have been killed in a preventable act of traffic violence.” 

Additional information on background:

• Just two weeks ago, an SUV driver killed four-year-old Demonte McDonald in South Jamaica, Queens.  

• So far in 2022, 67 pedestrians have been killed across the city. 17 pedestrians have been killed in Queens, in line with 2021's numbers. 

• Senator Brad Hoylman (D-Manhattan) has introduced legislation that would require the NYS Department of Motor Vehicles to set rules for large vehicles like SUVs and pick-up trucks, ensuring that they have clear visibility of pedestrians. This measure would make big cars, which are the deadliest cars, safer on our streets. 

• Last year, Transportation Alternatives released a policy agenda for the Adams Administration, urging them to set higher taxes for big, deadly cars, disincentivizing their ownership and making streets safer.

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