MANHATTAN, N.Y. — A 3-year-old girl was killed and three others were injured when a driver struck multiple pedestrians in a Harlem crosswalk on July 11, police said. The driver, identified as Devon Joseph, 41, of 720 Esplanade Gardens Plaza, has been charged with failing to yield to pedestrians.
The incident occurred at approximately 7:38 p.m. at the intersection of Lenox Avenue and West 135th Street, within the 32nd Precinct. Police responded to a 911 call and arrived to find a 3-year-old girl, later identified as Jaynelyse Valdez of New Rochelle, unconscious and unresponsive with head and body trauma. Valdez was transported by private means to a nearby hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Three others were also struck in the collision: a 2-year-old boy, a 4-month-old boy, and a 37-year-old woman, all of whom were transported privately to the hospital and are in stable condition.
An investigation by the NYPD Highway District’s Collision Investigation Squad determined that Joseph was driving a 2020 Nissan Pathfinder southbound on Lenox Avenue when he made a left turn onto eastbound West 135th Street. Police said the pedestrians were crossing in a marked crosswalk with a crossing signal in their favor when Joseph’s vehicle struck them.
Joseph remained at the scene and was not injured. No additional arrests have been made, but the investigation remains ongoing as the NYPD reviews the circumstances of the fatal collision.