MEMPHIS, TN : 7-year-old dies after being hit by SUV on Halloween on Wednesday, 2nd November 2016
Tony 'TJ' Colburn, 7, was hit by a vehicle while crossing the road on Halloween night. Wednesday, he died.Colburn had spent the evening with his family at the church Fall Festival, collecting candy, dressed as a Ninja Turtle, and smiling big. His grandmother Etoy Herrington said he was all smiles that night, just like every day he was alive.
"He was just a beautiful kid and he's just been happy since birth," Etoy Herrington said.
Colburn was taken to Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital in critical condition after the crash.
He was attending a Fall Festival at Bloomfield Baptist Church on South Parkway.
"We thought it was maybe another automobile. I mean, it was a large thud and then we heard the screams," Rev. Ralph White said.
Neighborhood children were leaving the annual festival at the church when a woman driving an SUV crashed into the child. She stayed on the scene and has not been charged with a crime.
"We was coming across the street and that family was right behind us, and we saw the lady speeding so me and my brother and sister ran across," Teanna McCornell said. "But the little boy was running, trying to speed across in front of his daddy."
That's when the SUV hit Colburn.
The driver told officers she was driving on South Parkway West and stopped for a group of children crossing the street. She then started driving again and noticed a group of kids crossing the street. When she got to where they were, she said the child ran into the street in front of her and she couldn't stop in time.
Moments later, Herrington received a frantic and unforgettable call from her daughter, TJ's mother.
"'Mom, TJ got hit by a car' and she just starting going like that, and she said he was unconscious and everything and we both just started crying," Herrington said.
Herrington came from her home in Nashville to be with the family. She remained hopeful and optimistic the power of prayer would help TJ survive.
Herrington said Tony died Wednesday morning when his heart gave out. The injury broke his shoulder, his leg, and left him with a brain injury.
"Marshay was saying 'come on Tony, come on Tony,' and he just, they said it was gone," Herrington said.
Later that night, TJ's family and friends gathered to remember the happy, smiling child during a candlelight vigil.
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7-year-old dies after being hit by SUV on Halloween