Karon Gardner's mother says drivers hit on Oct. 17 will not be charged
The Wayne County Prosecutor's Office declined to file charges against the two women involved in the fatal collision, a decision that has left the boy's family seeking answers.
By Aiko Petrov ·
Dominique Woods learned on Tuesday that the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office will not file criminal charges against the two drivers who struck her 11-year-old son, Karon Gardner, on Oct. 17. The decision ends the legal proceedings against the women without a trial, leaving the family to grieve without a formal finding of fault in the courtroom.
Gardner died after being hit by two vehicles at an intersection on Puritan Street. Woods said she was told the boy was standing on the yellow lines when the first car struck him. The driver, a woman in her 20s, continued driving around the block before stopping. The second driver remained at the scene and apologized to the family.
"It's hard for me to really explain it because I don't, I can't understand it either," Woods said regarding the prosecutor's reasoning. She expressed anger that the first driver, who left the immediate area, faced no charges. "You hit my son and you kept driving your car," she said. Woods noted that she has forgiven the second driver but has not yet received communication from the first.
On Saturday, a funeral procession led by a horse-drawn carriage traveled to the intersection where Gardner died. Community members gathered to offer hugs and letters of support. Remnants of the memorials set up after the crash remained visible near the park where Gardner had been walking.
Machelle Pearson, a witness to the accident, described the emotional toll of holding Gardner's hand as he took his final breath. She is advocating for traffic safety improvements in the area, including speed humps, cameras, and light-up stop signs. "There's a lot of youth out here," Pearson said, pointing to the nearby park and liquor store as factors that contribute to the danger.
Family and friends say they will continue to push for changes to the intersection. "We won't stop until we get justice for Karon and his mother," Pearson said. Gardner, who loved the Detroit Lions and dreamed of designing shoes, has been laid to rest.
Woods said she will miss the small moments of her son's life. "I'm going to miss my son rubbing my feet when they hurt," she told CBS News Detroit. "I'm going to miss my son asking for everything in the world."
