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 Lt. Trey Clanton, of the Shelbyville Police Department, photographs the child safety seat from which Ana Singleton was thrown last week. (T-G Photo by David Melson) [Click to enlarge] |
A child safety seat containing Ana Singleton, 2, was thrown out a window of her mother's van as it flipped over five times after she lost control on U.S. 231 North early Wednesday night, police said.
"She was pronounced dead Sunday morning from head injuries," said Lt. Trey Clanton, an accident investigator for the Shelbyville Police Department. "She never regained consciousness following the accident."
The seat landed approximately 20 yards south of the van, investigators said. Ana was thrown from the seat and was found a few feet away "unresponsive" and suffering from serious head injuries, police and rescuers said.
"She was buckled into the seat but the seat wasn't fastened into the vehicle itself," Clanton said. "The mother said she'd been having problems with the seat. I strapped it in and didn't have any trouble doing so."
Ana was thrown out a side window of the van on the third flip, Clanton said.
"Her injuries would have been minimal if she had been strapped in," Clanton said. "The cockpit around the seat was in real good shape."
Crystal Singleton, 24, Ana's mother, was treated and released at Heritage Medical Center, police said.
Police said Crystal Singleton apparently lost control of the van after its left rear tire disintegrated.
"A recapped tire on the right rear caused the accident," Clanton said. "The recap came off, she lost control, it caused her to hit an embankment and she overcorrected and lost control. I don't think speed was an issue."
Clanton said results of a blood-alcohol test on Crystal Singleton are still pending, but he saw no signs of intoxication. He said the case files will be turned over to the district attorney's office but that he thought charges are unlikely.
The investigator emphasized the importance of properly strapping child safety seats into vehicles.
"Clamping another 20 to 30 pounds onto the child, that's just more kinetic energy when they hit something (if the seat is unbuckled)," Clanton said. "If she'd been in a $1,200 seat it wouldn't have helped without her being buckled in. If a person is not buckled in, once they're ejected their mortality rate rises 400 percent."
Help available
Persons needing help with child safety seats may have them checked at the Shelbyville Police Department, Lt. Trey Clanton said. Any on-shift supervisor or Clanton will make sure seats are installed correctly, he said.
Note: The nature of the Internet makes it impractical for our staff to review every comment. If you feel that a comment is offensive, please
Please everyone who has little ones, buckling your children up should be the first thing you do before you get into your car. Our prayers go our to this family, this is such a sad tragedy that could've been prevented.
I have a grandchild that I am very concerned for,because his other grandmother and her dauther never straps him into a carseat. This grandmother has been ticketed once before when someone called police and they were on the road. I guess it didn't teach them anything.If they leave my house again I'll be calling for the safety of the child.
From the police report it appears that the child was strapped into the seat, but the seat was not strapped into the van. I've got kids and now grandchildren. Yes, it is a pain in the neck to change car seats from one vehicle to another, as it also is where car seats double as carriers when the child is out of the vehicle. However, that is no excuse to be so lazy and uncaring about a child's health that a person would just put the car seat into the car/van without strapping it in. The mother has suffered a tragic loss of course. However, charges should still be made because it was her own stupidity that caused her child's death. From the police report it appears highly probable that Ana would have easily survived if she was properly in a secured car seat. Secondly, who the heck uses recaps anymore besides truckers?
What a sad and unnecessary accident. The tragic part of this is that is was 100% preventable. My heart goes out to the family.
I agree with Trail Rider 49. The mother is at fault.I couldn't imagine having to live with knowing my child could have still been here if I had taken the time to buckle her in properly. If the law does not punish the mother for this crime what are we saying to the people? That it is ok to not buckle up. It is the law and she should be punished. I do agree it was 100% laziness on the mothers part. My prayers are with this family because this is such a tragedy.
Daddy Bear,
Are you kidding me? What could the law do to this woman that would be worse than what she will be going through for the rest of her life?
Criminal charges are brought to "Teach a lesson" that a particular activity is unacceptable. This very tragic and senseless death is the lesson and everyone should learn from it..
Both Crystal and Ana are in my prayers.
Poor Me, after reading your comment, something occurred to me. You are right, criminal charges are brought to teach people a lesson. And yes, the mother will suffer the loss of her child for the rest of her life. But, apparently the threat of her child dying wasn't enough incentive to make sure that carseat was fastened in properly. If the natural consequences of an act are not incentive enough to prevent a specific type of conduct, then the law must apply to ensure that there is additional incentive to prevent negligent behavior. So, it is with that train of thought that I agree criminal charges are warranted. Now, whether that be a citation for failure to properly restrain her child or felony Vehicular Homicide, that is not for me to decide. This case is being turned over to the DA's office. I'm sure they will make the right call...whatever that is. Sadly, in this case, no matter what happens, no one wins.
If I am reading this article correctly, speed was not a factor, no signs of intoxication, just a bad tire and possibly a bad seat belt or a mother in a hurry. My heart breaks for Crystal and Ana, her child. Everyone please take the time to buckle your children, grandchildren or any child you place in your automobile in the proper seat and to check the child seat and check the seat belt. If you have grandchildren please tell your children of this tragidy and hope others can learn from this bad mistake.
This was a verry tragic accident that mabey alot of people can learn from .My prayers go out to the mother..
How could you say such a hurtfull about a mother who lost her child. Your right she will pay for her mistake. Have you ever been in a rush and made a mistake? I pray you don't eat your words!
The threat of your child dying is with every mother everyday of that child's life. Every time your child gets in the car there is the threat of that child dying in an accident. Yes the child should have been strapped in, I agree with that but how many times have you jumped in your car without your seat belt ..or worse yet seen children riding in the back of a pick up truck. (and that's legal)
Not so very long ago child safety seats and seat belts were not a requirement...most of us lived through those days. This mother is suffering enough loss, think about the crude way you say things before you place them on the internet. There is no way any of us would ever know for sure if this accident could have been prevented or not... the child may have suffered enough injuries to not survive, even with the seat buckled in. Saying it could have been prevented is all in theory.
I have known Crystal and her entire family for a very,very, long time......She is a great person as well as her family...she would NEVER intentionally hurt either one of her girls! I dont know what happened or why the seat belt wasn't belted in to the van...thats not for me to judge or question, nor is it anyone elses place either. She has to live with the fact that "hey maybe I couldve prevented this". To me that guilt alone is ENOUGH!I have seen so many kids not in carseats its unbelievable.....think before you judge , its not your place! I love you Crystal...I am here for you sweetie, love aunt carrie
Just for the record, I am Crystal's sister and who are any of you to judge her, She is a very loving mother and loves her kids more than life, Yes Little Ana is gone,but Crystal needs all the prayers that she can get and not for people to judge her. Both her and Ana were wearing selt belts you can tell from the bruises that are on Ana and Crystal. So Please just give her strength to get thru this hard time. AND DO NOT JUDGE HER.. Keep your head up Crystal I love you and will hold your hand every step of the way...............
Just for the record, I am Crystal's sister and who are any of you to judge her, She is a very loving mother and loves her kids more than life, Yes Little Ana is gone,but Crystal needs all the prayers that she can get and not for people to judge her. Both her and Ana were wearing selt belts you can tell from the bruises that are on Ana and Crystal. So Please just give her strength to get thru this hard time. AND DO NOT JUDGE HER.. Keep your head up Crystal I love you and will hold your hand every step of the way...............
My heart goes out for the sorrow this mother will go through for the rest of her life. The child is with God and will be sadly missed. Punish in court, I think not- what about drug dealers that sale to our young people. Most of them get off the hook. Why punish the mom?
My prayers are with you Crystal, its very easy for people to judge you.For one day they also will be judged by a higher court.
Turn a deaf ear to those who just have to say hurtful things.For they not know any better.
As for Ana, I know she is with God and he had a need and a plan for her. And she is in a much better place.And always remember she is only a heart beat away.And one day you will be with her again.
So may the pain you are going thru with her loss,may God touch your heart and let you know, " That she is with him and away from all these evil remark making people."
May you always remember the good times that you had with her and know that she will never suffer any more............
Accidents do happen and they could happen to any one of us. We often change car seats out between the two cars. In a hurry one day I took the car seat out of my daughters car and set it in back of mine in case I needed that day. A few days later we were going to Nashville and made the drive without any problems. As I was taking my grandbaby out of the car seat it moved and I realized it had never been strapped in my car! We are avid seat belt users and the children are always buckled up no matter how short the trip is. This was just an oversite that could have cost us a life just as this woman and her child. Accidents do happen. To much rushing around and too much on the mind these days and important things are forgotten.
I just lost my Dad on Mother's Day. I am 27 years old and thought what could be worse than the heartbreak I feel and then I thought of my children. It is only the thought of losing one of them that truly brings me to my knees. To the Mother of this beautiful child- you are not forgotten in my prayers and there will be times that your hurt doesn't want to hear about the hope, but God is closest to the broken hearted!
"As for Ana, I know she is with God and he had a need and a plan for her. "
-- Posted by Wheelbillie on Wed, Jun 3, 2009, at 12:26 AM
Yes, it is true that this little girl is with God, but God's plans weren't death for her. Why when something like this happens, people blame God? God promises us in the bible that he came to give us life and in abundance. The ENEMY is the one who KILLS, steals, and detroys. God's plans are NOT death! This is why it is so importnat to pray protection over our loved ones everyday so that they will be protected. God promises us long lives.
My prayers of comfort are with the family, especially the mother.
I think there is a real difference in blaming God and the fact of knowing that God has a pre-destined purpose for all of us. If it was not this child's time to go she would have lived through this accident. I have seen people, even children walk away from accidents much worse than this one..and seen people die in accidents that the car didn't seem hurt at all. What else would explain those facts except pre-destination? I believe our days are numbered from the day we are born and I know it doesn't seem fair but then again nobody promised us Life was Fair, did they?
I have a 2 year old granddaughter and I can not imagine losing her. My children have always been in seat belts and my daughter always has her girls in their car seats, strapped in. I know when you're switching car seats around things can happen and I have almost driven off with my 2 yr old granddaughter's seat not strapped in the car. The only reason I saw it was because I had to open the back door to get her juice cup. This could easily have been us or any other parent/grandparent/caregiver of little children.
I also have a very dear friend who lost her daughter to a "preventable" accident and have seen first hand the pain and anguish a parent goes through. Please do not judge the mother of this child as she is going through pain that hopefully none of you will ever experience.
Dianatn,
I just know what the word says...
"With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation." (Psalm 91:16)
"The Lord will keep you from all harm--he will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore." Psalm 121:7, 8
honda14
I am not going to argue religion with you but where exactly does it say in either one of those scriptures that you quoted, that you are promised any number of days?
Dianatn,
Commom sense tell us that a long life doesn't mean at the age of 2. You have your beliefs and I have mine.
Sorry. Meant to say common.
When a baby dies at birth, whose will is that? Who is at fault when a child dies of cancer or other diseases? Is that considered a long life?
But you are correct You have your beliefs and I have mine..
Yes, so let's leave it at that.
My prayers to Crystal and her family in the loss of her child. She is very young, and this has to be devastating to her, and the other child for loosing her sister. I do not know this young lady but I have 3 children that I raise, and know from experience of incidents that can happen with "children and child seats", their may be other parents out their that have had similar experiences, I do not know. But I am going to explain some of mines, so that others may get a better understanding of "Possibilities" that can occur.
I have taken out my childs car seat whenever they have to ride in other vehicles, and when they come back the car seat is placed back in the car unstrapped to the seat. I did notice it was unstrapped once the child tried to get in it, because it tilted forward when she tried to climb up into it, but if it did not tilt forward, I would not have known it was not buckled to the seat of the car; (most of the time when the child-seat is in the car you only check that the child is buckled into the child-seat, not that the child-seat is buckled to the seat of the car).
My last two children learned how to unbuckle their car seats while I was driving down the road and would climb out of the car seats. The youngest one before she learned how to unbuckle the child-seat, she would loosen the straps on the car seat across her chest (sliding it down), pull her arms out of the staps, and reach down on the side of the car seat and unbuckle the seat belt that strapped the childs car seat to the seat of the car; I wouldn't know it was unbuckled until I made a turn onto another street and the seat would flip over side ways. I had to tie a ribbon in a knot under and above the clamps that came across the chest of the child to keep her from sliding it down and getting her arms out.
Accidents do happen, we do forget to check that the child seats are actually buckled to the seat of the car. None the less, this parent did strap her child in a car seat, possibly unaware the childs-seat was not strapped to the seat of the car. I do not think the mother would take the time to buckle her child up in a car seat and purposely not buckle the childs-seat to the seat of the car, because the seat would flip over side ways and onto the floor board when she turns onto another street. I do not believe she should be held liable for this, it was an "Oversight" not an "negligience". And no more guilt should be pressured on to this young lady. If she did not take the time to buckle the child in the child seat then the pressure of fault would be genuine. But this is not the situation, this is an oversight not a negligience. My prayers to the family.
I do not, personally, feel that charges should be brought against the mom in this situation. I think it was a tragic accident, but again, if you slow down and check your children, nothing like this will happen.
I have 3 children of my own, and at one time I had 3 car seats in the car at one time. We had to change the seats to our other car occasionally. But I always took the time and made sure the car seats were properly hooked up. I never had any of my children try to get out of their car seats because they new that they had to be in their seats and buckled up before car got started or they weren't going anywhere. Even now, I have 1 that sits in a booster seat, but everyone in the car knows that the car doesn't move until everyone is buckled up. I have lost friends who had car accidents and weren't wearing seatbelts.
I understand that sometimes you can be in a rush, but how long does it honestly take to just check your children's car seat/seat belt. Those few seconds/minutes could save their lives. I am not placing blame on anyone, just stating that everyone needs to slow down and protect your children.
Lamey I am sorry but your post is very harsh. It wasnt lazienss or stupidity it was an accident!!!. It could happen to you, oh but your perfect. I lost a nephew 2 years ago and it was an accident. My deepest condolences to the family.
The fault here lies with whoever sold this lady the recap tires. Which is against the law, if I'm not mistaken. Yes the child was not properly fastened in. By the time my daughter was 6 months old she knew how to get out of her car seat. Of course that was 27 years ago and car sets have come a long way. The parents of this precious child needs our prayers. Not the constant judging which is always on these comments. WE all make mistakes, but no one has a right to call this mother stupid. You do not know her heart. maybe the ones who sit at thier screens all the time, should spend more time with thier face in a book called the Bible. My heart and my prayers go out to this family, they are going to have a hard time emotionally. And all of you set in judgement of them areonly making matters worse. Grow up!!
The newspaper ask that we be respectful to others and to try to stay on topic. But as always, it comes down to a handful of so called do gooders who constantly condemn and put down. Kudos to the aunt and sister of Crystal who stood up to you all. No one knows for sure if the car seat was fastened in or not, but yet so many assume they know everything. Crystal seems to have a good support system and that's what she needs now.
Saturday night as my husband and I was driving to Tullahoma to attend a gospel singing, we were nearly side swiped by two trucks and a car. ALL full of young men, most likely all of whom were under 20. They were weaving in and out of traffic like a bunch of mad men. They nearly side swiped another car also. When I came even with that other car, I noticed that the woman driving had a small child in a car seat in the back. I wonder if that truck had hit this lady and she had wrecked, would it be her fault or the trucks and cars driving reaklessly? My point being? Figure it out since you are so smart.I called the law on these young men, who were still driving up and down Madison street thru the Sonic parking lot at high rates of speed and it was then 10pm.
Stop judging so much people and get off of Crystals back.
yes this was laziness pure and simple, I feel horrible that the child is gone, but 5 minutes would have saved a life....NO EXCUSES about how wonderful a mother she was, she was a lazy mother that didn't take the time to properly restrain her child, and she paid the ultimate price and I find it difficult to buy her "deep grief" when she is out eating breakfast at a fast food restaurant and laughing it up a couple of hours BEFORE the childs funeral. Sorry, but if I lost my child, I would BARELY make it out of bed, let alone at a restaurant eating like nothing happened, I would not even known it was her if several people had not of pointed her out, YES I know she needs to eat blah blah blah, but she certainly didn't look like she was grieving...JMHO
I am sorry this lady lost her child, but I have heard from people who knew her that she was notorious for not strapping the child's carseat into the vehicle. That may be a terrible thing to say, but as stolen25 pointed out, he/she saw her out eating and "laughing it up" a couple of hours before the child's funeral. Seems to me she wasn't too worried, but that's JMHO as well. My prayers are with the family.
Ana lives on in the lives of others.
She gave life to other little children.
Bless you Crystal.
No Weapon formed against shall prosper!
I believe something should be done yes she has to pay for this this rest of her life by the pain of losing her child but there should still be charges on her for neglect or something that baby could not fasten it self in the seat or protect herself her MOTHER was suppose to do it for her