4-year-old boy in critical condition after being struck by dirt bike in Flushing, Queens
FLUSHING, Queens (WABC) -- A 4-year-old boy is in critical condition after being struck by a dirt bike in Queens.
Jonathan Beauchamp was inside a parking lot at the Flushing Meadows Corona Park Boathouse when he was struck just before 6 p.m. Sunday.
He was with his parents and ran out from in between cars when he was hit by a dirt biker who was driving through the parking lot. The biker didn't stop.
The child was rush to the hospital with severe head trauma where he is in critical condition.
"Dirt bikes going back and forth, there was so much going on, we didn't realize somebody got hit until the ambulance came. Kind of messed up, especially for a child to get hit," said witness Harold Hadalgo,
It was just last week, when the community made a call to increase penalties for those on illegal dirt bikes and ATVs, which are difficult for officers to catch.
"They know there is no enforcement mechanism that they can be chased and they do it blatantly and they do it in front of law enforcement almost intimidating them," said Mark Gjonaj, New York City Council, 13th District.
"We are not allowed to pursue, but the way we get around this is we wait until we see the dirt bike refueling at a gas station," an officer said.
Officials say eight people have been killed and 350 others injured in the first quarter of this year by the illegal bikes.
City Councilman Gjonaj wants penalties increased to $750 for first time offenders and $1,500 for second offenses.
Mayor Bill de Blasio agrees.
"I do agree with increasing the fines too, I think people just need to understand there's going to be lots of consequences," de Blasio said Monday.
No arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing.
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