A New York boy whose mother cut his throat earlier this year died after collapsing in the lunch line at school, WABC-TV reports.
The 6-year-old child, whose name has not been released, had been standing in line when he suddenly fell to the floor and began foaming from the mouth, sources told the New York Post.
Jason Nunez, 11, told the newspaper that the child suddenly passed out.
“He hit his head,” Nunez said. “The blood was coming out of his mouth.”
Boy who was slashed in the throat by mom dies while standing in lunch line at school https://t.co/AjaVMQwqym pic.twitter.com/TAxKGdf0RG
— New York Post (@nypost) June 14, 2019
Emergency crews were called to PS/MS 5 Port Morris around 11:40 a.m. Friday for a report of an unresponsive child. He was rushed to a hospital in critical condition but was later pronounced dead.
Sources told the Post that the boy had a “pre-existing injury” and that the wound on his neck had not healed completely.
In April, the boy’s mother, Shanice Martin, reportedly slashed his throat and that of his 2-year-old sister with a box cutter on a street corner in the Bronx.
Martin allegedly abandoned the children and then went to a police station to confess while she was covered in blood.
“Go ahead and arrest me,” Martin reportedly told officers.
Members of Martin’s family have said she battled mental health problems and homelessness. She was charged with assault, child endangerment and child abandonment, and remains in jail without bond.
PS/MS 5 Principal Danielle Keane wrote a letter to students’ parents about the incident, according to the New York Post.
“Several students witnessed what occurred,” the letter reportedly reads. “We know how devastating this news is for our school community. Our school crisis team is available to provide support for students and staff as needed.
“We are saddened by this loss and are here to assist our school community in any way we can.”
Janice Rodriguez, 34, told the New York Post that her third-grader said he’s now scared to go to school.
“I’m shocked,” Rodriguez said. “My third-grader told me, ‘Mommy, I don’t want to go to school anymore.’”
