A grieving family is sharing the final “happy” photo of a three-year-old girl who was killed just a matter of minutes after the photo was taken as the family enjoyed a countryside walk
A family is mourning the loss of a three year old girl, sharing what they describe as her final “happy” photo taken moments before she was fatally struck by a hit-and-run driver.
The poignant image, captured by the child’s grandmother, has since gone viral on TikTok after being posted by the girl’s mother.
“My mum took this picture at 4:47 pm and my daughter’s time of death was 4:52,” Samantha Jensen shared with her followers. “My mum didn’t know she was capturing the last moments of her life. This one is really hard for me to look at, just knowing what comes next breaks my heart.”
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Speaking to People magazine, Jensen, the children’s mother, revealed she was away for a wedding when the tragedy occurred in Oldtown, Idaho. She explained her children, Scarlett and two year old Henry, were in the care of their grandmother, Jamie at the time.
“That afternoon they went to get ice cream and enjoy a walk together,” recounted Jensen. “When they arrived home to our back driveway, Scarlett wanted to get out of the stroller to pick flowers. That’s when my mum took the last picture I have of her alive.”
Jensen revealed that the family was strolling in their private driveway when a Chevy Tahoe came hurtling down the road, hitting all three of them, reports the Mirror US.
“My mother was waving her hands, screaming for him to stop and she tried to grab my children to move them out of the way but he was going too fast. Scarlett was killed almost instantly and my mum and Henry were critically injured,” Jensen said.
Local NBC affiliate KHQ reported that the car fled the scene swiftly but was caught by authorities a few miles away. The station also reported that Henry and his grandmother were rushed to Sacred Heart Hospital where the toddler was placed in the PICU.
KHQ later reported that the boy had been moved from the PICU to another area of the hospital. Jamie reportedly suffered a broken shoulder due to the accident.
“It is a blessing we had Scarlett, she had the perfect life, just surrounded and filled with love every day,” Jim Patton, Scarlett’s grandfather, told the outlet while remembering his granddaughter. “A piece of my soul is gone, so full of life, so full of love. Such a smart little girl.”
According to Patton, the child had just started school and was constantly making new friends. The grieving grandfather added that she was supposed to play soccer on Saturday and was excited about it because she had previously kicked a goal during her match last week.
Patton stated that all he can do now is pray for his grandson’s recovery. “He’s a tough boy,” Patton said.
According to hospital staff, the boy was handed over with multiple injuries, including eight broken ribs, a fractured spine, broken clavicle, a broken jaw, and more. “Henry spent a week in the PICU before he was stable enough to come home, and he had a full body brace on for 10 weeks,” Jensen told People.
According to the woman, it was weeks before Jamie realized that the photo she had snapped just prior to the accident was the last one she had of her granddaughter alive. “My mum lost her phone when they were hit and it took us a while to find it, so when we finally did I was going through pictures and found that one,” Jensen said.
“I looked at the timestamp and realized it was only five minutes before her declared time of death, so it must have been taken seconds before the person hit them.”
The driver of the vehicle was apprehended and identified as a 23 year old from Newport. The driver was taken to the hospital after sustaining injuries. The man is now serving 10 years in prison, with two years credited for time according to Jensen. Since her death, a GoFundMe has been set up to help offset the costs of a funeral.
