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Woman, backing car out of garage, hits and kills 2-year-old daughter

49 Comments

A two-year-old girl died after she was hit by a car being backed out of a garage by her mother in Kamo City, Niigata Prefecture.

According to police, the incident occurred at around 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday. Sankei reported Noriko Kojima, 37, was backing her car out of the garage when she hit her second-oldest daughter, Yunon, who was standing nearby.

The child was rushed to the nearest hospital, but died shortly after arrival. Doctors said she suffered a fractured skull.

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49 Comments
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Ugghh. There is nothing else to say but rest in peace, little one. I am so sorry you won't be able to experience growing up. Gone too soon.

5 ( +5 / -0 )

RIP......

Inattentive parents boggle my mind. But it's just as sad that she will suffer probably the psychological burden of this forever.

2 ( +7 / -5 )

OK. That's it, time to bring in the law of manditory parenting classes. These fools that have children are really getting out of hand. RIP child.

-4 ( +8 / -12 )

RIP to the little one, and of course the mother did not mean to kill her. BUT, this whole having the kid (or spouse) wait outside while mom or dad pull out of the driveway before getting in thing has GOT to stop. I'm guessing that's what happened here and the kid was waiting in the wrong spot.

0 ( +8 / -8 )

Who read this for people who has children will be a example better keep your kids inside, children's are curious for naturally. RIP and hope fast recovering for the mother and father.

-2 ( +2 / -4 )

@Joshua,

Trust me, as the father of a 26 month old toddler boy, every time I read these articles, it reminds me of the need to always be vigilant and extra careful when it comes to anything related to my son at this age.

6 ( +7 / -1 )

I never had this problem as I never moved my car back UNLESS I could see where my child was.....and that was standing in front of the car!

-1 ( +5 / -6 )

This poor woman will have to live with the guilt of having done this, forever.

However, her misery will not doubt be doubly compounded by people like those above submitting comments about how stupid she was.

11 ( +14 / -3 )

I still vividly remember that my younger son was hit by a car moving slowly backwards when he was playing near the car. Luckily, he got away with a minor fracture of his lower leg. So all drivers should better remember that a kid or two are around perchance when he/she moves the car.

RIP little one.

2 ( +4 / -2 )

They just dont keep track of thier kids

-4 ( +6 / -10 )

so so sad but so preventable!

2 ( +7 / -5 )

Joshua: and hope fast recovering for the mother and father.

Ugh! Look, this isn't like having lost your wallet. She accidentally killed her kid. If they loved her they will feel regret and guilt for the rest of their lives. Accidents happen. You can't have your eyes everywhere and be alert 100% all the time. This is just a very, very unfortunate case.

2 ( +4 / -2 )

That is another one of these stories that we have seen too many times already. When will young parents here understand that 2-year olds should not waddle around cars alone?

-1 ( +3 / -4 )

Happens more often than you think.

6 ( +7 / -1 )

Never move your car without having eyes on your children. Period. Such a simple but fundamental safety rule every parent should already know. Japan needs to adopt a more 'safety-first' culture.

0 ( +5 / -5 )

Once again the Perfect Parenting Brigade is here to tell us how everyone who actually has kids is doing it wrong!

They should force everyone in the world to read the JT comments section. All deaths would be reduced to zero, and everyone would live forever.

5 ( +14 / -9 )

RIP little one sorry your parents did not have any common sense. They really need classes for some of these parents. Every day I see kids not in car seat or wearing seat belts. I have to teach your kids right from the start or they won't teach their kids right.

-4 ( +2 / -6 )

A car navi screen with a rear view camera that engages automatically when you reverse goes a long way to preventing this sort of accident. They could be compulsory items in the future. Mine has saved me on a couple of occasions when alone, with local school kids walking behind the car, though I usually have my 'partner' guide me out of the garage.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

We don't know all details, but I wonder if the mother was / will be arrested for negligent driving resulting in death?

I don't mean to be harsh - heaven forbid it's already so tragic - but I would hazard a guess, that if it were a stranger reversing and failed to see the child, they'd be sleeping on a hard mat tonight.

Often in the cases of families it's an "accident", whereas in the case of "outsiders" it's punishable negligence.

Why?

0 ( +1 / -1 )

There are also rear-view camera and screen kits that people could buy and install on their cars.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

My two boys were always IN the car before I backed it out...

2 ( +3 / -1 )

Although I feel bad for the mother...this is preventable. If my kid is outside, I always make sure I know where she is or I don't move the car. Two seconds of vigilance and awareness of your surroundings is all that's needed,

0 ( +1 / -1 )

thumbs up Strangerland you obviously had the heart stoppers most parents experience. My case : I was gently holding my sons hand when he broke free to run across the road , ever since i had to grip his hand which the my kid objected to and would cry to mother to hold his hand. Anyway ...my thoughts are with this family and how lucky we are.

3 ( +5 / -2 )

Accidents do happen but some don't need to if we are just extra careful. We should learn from the mistakes of others (we have read such cases too many) and become wise to avoid damage and disaster, especially such as this one. A sad case indeed!

1 ( +1 / -0 )

@My_Opinion

Yes... it happens more often than most people realise... in fact, I'm surprised we don't hear about this more in Japan, as I know in some other countries you can go to their national news websites and do a search using the keywords CHILD, CAR, and DRIVEWAY and you'll get dozens of articles about similar incidents.

This is very sad though... I don't have children of my own, but I do have a niece and nephews who I would absolutely hate for anything like this to happen to. Feeling very much for the family and for the mother in particular at this time. I hope she gets some real support.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

They should force everyone in the world to read the JT comments section. All deaths would be reduced to zero, and everyone would live forever.

How about standing behind the car next time.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Without the details, people need to stop judging the mother. I still remember the first article I ever read about a story like this. A little girl, 2 or 3 years old, and her grandmother were on the sofa. The grandmother got up and went into another room to get a blanket. While she was gone the little girl apparently decided to run outside to say goodbye to grandpa and got run over by her grandfather who was backing out of the garage. Grandpa had no idea the little girl was even outside, much less anywhere near the car. It's a horrible thing to happen, and not entirely preventable. No sane person wants to hit their own child with their car so don't assume gross negligence without details. Back cameras on cars are hopefully going to become a standard.

5 ( +6 / -1 )

2 years old. Thats not a kid. Thats. Baby. If hqppened to me I would hang myself.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

As I reread the story and the comments, I think I can sum up my feelings in three words:

Remembrance: A young toddler is gone and the lives of a mother and other family members is changed forever. The life of the the child taken too soon and the grief of the family needs to be remembered.

Reflection: We do no have all of the facts, but for any of us that are parents, we all know that it only takes a moment, a split second for something to happen to a young child. I have been reflecting on how many times a little laxness has created danger and how fortunate I have been to not suffer the consequences of this. Yes, some things are preventable, but we all know that even the perfect parent can't be completely perfect.

Reinforcement: However, notwithstanding that, this and every similar incident reinforces my determination to do my best to protect my child and to learn lessons from the experiences of other.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Cortes Elijah: OK. That's it, time to bring in the law of manditory parenting classes.

I hope you're joking. Mandatory parenting classes is a bad idea. Once somebody with an agenda gets in position to influence curriculum, all sorts of weird stuff is going to be required. Can you imagine a police state in which people had to apply for a license to have children? License to have sex? It's not a big jump.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

Once again the Perfect Parenting Brigade is here to tell us how everyone who actually has kids is doing it wrong!

Come on, don't be ridiculous. This is not about perfect parenting, this is just about being non-stupid. How can this woman leave her 2-year old daughter alone outside while she tries to move her car? This is stupid, plain stupid.

Everything could happen because the girl could be standing anywhere and the mother has no idea where, she can't see her from inside the car. So how could she decide to move the vehicle presumably ignoring where the girl is located? Plus the girl could also run away somewhere to the road and get hit by a car. I mean did this women expect that a 2-year old girl who has no notion of danger would understand by herself that standing behind a moving car is dangerous or that running to the street is dangerous? Of course she doesn't.

So how can someone leave a 2-years old child standing alone without anyone looking at her? This defies reason. Again this is asking for serious troubles and this women just got them. Right there.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

Back-up cameras area a real life saver.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Come on, don't be ridiculous. This is not about perfect parenting, this is just about being non-stupid. How can this woman leave her 2-year old daughter alone outside while she tries to move her car? This is stupid, plain stupid.

I guess your parents got the child manual on leaving the maternity ward

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

Isn't it common sense to have your kids somewhere safe when moving a car??? Perfect parenting? No, common sense parenting....,

1 ( +1 / -0 )

RIP little girl, so so sad. And I really feel for her family as well, especially the mother who backed out the car.

Hope this serves as a lesson to all other parents out there to please be careful and watch your children!

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Come on, don't be ridiculous. This is not about perfect parenting, this is just about being non-stupid. How can this woman leave her 2-year old daughter alone outside while she tries to move her car?

How do you know she did? Maybe someone else was supposed to be watching the kid inside, and the mother didn't even know she was outside.

Everything could happen because the girl could be standing anywhere and the mother has no idea where, she can't see her from inside the car. So how could she decide to move the vehicle presumably ignoring where the girl is located?

If she thought the girl was in the house, she wouldn't have been looking for her.

Plus the girl could also run away somewhere to the road and get hit by a car. I mean did this women expect that a 2-year old girl who has no notion of danger would understand by herself that standing behind a moving car is dangerous or that running to the street is dangerous?

If the mother thought the girl was in the house, she wouldn't have been thinking about the girl at all.

So how can someone leave a 2-years old child standing alone without anyone looking at her?

We have no idea if she left the child at all - she may have thought the child was inside.

As I said, the Perfect Parenting Brigade is at it again.

3 ( +4 / -1 )

Doctors said she suffered a fractured skull.

I knew a firefighter (close friend bck' in CA) who was the 1st guy to arrive on scene in this exact scenario. He was a rookie, what he saw shook him up pretty badly. Had to take the rest of his shift off.

Accidents happen folks. Sometimes, it's nobody's fault. Poor mother. She will be traumatized, for a while, each time she gits behind the wheel.

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

Yeah, I feel sorry for everyone all around. Horrible traumatic story.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

I once thought of moving my car into the yard to wash it while my four year old was outside. That thought lasted one millisecond. Then I decided to strap him in even though I was only moving the car about 10 meters.

Any clue as to why I did that?

-1 ( +1 / -2 )

Again, we don't know that the mother was the one watching the daughter or that she even knew the daughter was outside.

4 ( +5 / -1 )

Japan needs to adopt a more 'safety-first' culture.

Do a Google search of your country __ and "child killed while parent backs car out of garage/driveway". Yep, I guess your country needs to adopt your "safety-first" plan too.

3 ( +4 / -1 )

'Stupid parents! Why are Japanese so inattentive to their children...typical Japanese?' -- 'Poor angel, RIP you careless mother may you ROT IN HELL!!' -- 'Why doesn't Japan have ultrasonic-super-radar-alarmed-Delorians that can go back to the future AND make certain that this kind of accident never happens-- I mean, isn't it 2015 already? Is that too much to ask'

Let's all wait for the comments from the perfect and accident-free members of the JapanToday crowd to appear-- Because I'm SURE the mother didn't think her kid was in the back-seat hidden from the mirror, or playing in the garden and ran onto the tarmac- no, no, not possible! The mother was a deadbeat who was in such a hurry she ran over her kid intentionally to get to her joshikai on time, right?

1 ( +3 / -2 )

I agree--we can't just blame the mother immediately because we don't know all that happened in this tragedy. Little kids can be all over the place. RIP, little girl.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

There are also rear-view camera and screen kits that people could buy and install on their cars.

Better not to rely on these.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Sad news indeed. I'm surprised more incidents like this don't happen though... Japanese seem lost ion the clouds a lot of the time and seem to have terrible spacial awareness. This is something that should be on every driving test!

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Sad news indeed.. She may rest in peace. Such an angel. :( As a mother, I always believe that no mother wants to hurt her children in any ways. That is why it is called an ACCIDENT! in the first place. I beg to disagree to idea of those people who generalize on how inattentive or inefficient Japanese parents are as I have seen a number of them who really take care of their children so well. The mum for sure will suffer the guilt for the rest of her life and that is not nothing but awful. Let just just pray for the kid's soul and for the mother for her recovery.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

There's a bumpersticker for this.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Everybody makes mistakes. I hope the family finds peace.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Cars are dangerous, and most people don't need them. Poor girl, poor mum and dad, a different life style and they would still have her.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

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