Another Child Dead. Another Law Delayed. How Many More?
AD 51: Jan 1, 2022 - Jun 4, 2025
The Death Count Grows
In Assembly District 51, the street is a gauntlet. Fourteen people have died since 2022. Two were children. Twenty-three suffered serious injuries. The numbers do not flinch. In the last twelve months alone, three more lives ended, seven more bodies broken beyond repair. Pedestrians, cyclists, the old and the young—no one is spared. NYC Open Data
The Shape of Harm
Cars and SUVs kill and maim the most. Trucks crush. Motorcycles and mopeds add to the toll. Bikes, too, sometimes wound. The deadliest places: crossings, corners, and the long, straight stretches where speed rules. The most vulnerable—those on foot, those on two wheels—pay the highest price.
Leadership: Action and Delay
Assembly Member Marcela Mitaynes has moved. She co-sponsored a bill to hold car owners liable when their vehicles run red lights, closing a loophole that lets dangerous drivers walk away. She backed a bill to force speed limiters on repeat offenders. She voted yes on school speed cameras. She has called for daylighting every corner, for cleaner deliveries, and for equal tolls to keep trucks out of working-class streets.
But the pace is slow. The carnage continues. Laws pile up in Albany while bodies pile up on 4th Avenue and 60th Street. Every delay means another family left with a hole at the table.
What Comes Next
This is not fate. These are not accidents. Every death is a policy failure. Every injury is a choice made by those in power. The tools exist: lower speed limits, more cameras, real daylighting, protected crossings, and enforcement that targets drivers, not victims.
Call your Assembly Member. Demand faster action. Demand that every street in AD 51 put people first. Do not wait for another name to be carved into stone. The blood on the asphalt is not yet dry.
Citations
▸ Citations
- Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4726907, NYC Open Data, Accessed 2025-06-04
- Seven Brooklyn Electeds Join Growing Calls For Universal Daylighting, Streetsblog NYC, Published 2024-01-17
- V-DAY SPECIAL: Bigger Cargo Bikes and Last-Mile Warehouse Regulation is a Match Made In Heaven, Streetsblog NYC, Published 2023-02-14
- Poorer Brooklynites Bear the Brunt of Online Delivery Boom: Report, Streetsblog NYC, Published 2024-01-23
- Lawmakers say influx of e-commerce warehouses has spiked greenhouse gas emissions in Red Hook, urge regulation, brooklynpaper.com, Published 2023-11-29
- Pols call for ‘equalized tolling’ on all crossings into Manhattan under congestion pricing on eve of board deliberations, amny.com, Published 2023-07-18
- File A 5440, Open States, Published 2025-02-14
- File A 2299, Open States, Published 2025-01-17
- File A 7652, Open States, Published 2024-06-07
▸ Other Geographies
AD 51 Assembly District 51 sits in Brooklyn, Precinct 72, District 38.
It contains Sunset Park (West), Green-Wood Cemetery, Brooklyn CB7.
▸ See also
Traffic Safety Timeline for Assembly District 51
Garbage Truck Crushes Cyclist on 9th Avenue▸A garbage truck followed a man on a bike down 9th Avenue. His helmet cracked. His head struck. He was ejected, crushed. The truck rolled on, undamaged. The cyclist died in the street. Metal and flesh met. Only one survived.
A 35-year-old man riding a bike south on 9th Avenue was killed when a garbage truck, also heading south, struck him. According to the police report, 'His helmet cracked. His head struck. He was ejected, crushed. The truck bore no damage. He died in the street.' The cyclist suffered fatal head and crush injuries. The truck driver, a 62-year-old man, was not injured. No contributing factors or driver errors were specified in the police data. The report notes the cyclist wore a helmet, which cracked on impact. The crash left the truck undamaged and ended the cyclist’s life on the roadway.
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Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4525008,
NYC Open Data,
Accessed 2025-06-15
SUV Turns, Strikes Pedestrian With Head-On Impact▸A Ford SUV turned right at 4th Avenue and 32nd Street. The driver’s view was blocked. The bumper hit a 61-year-old woman crossing with the light. She fell. Blood pooled. The street bore witness to another wound.
A 61-year-old woman was struck by a Ford SUV while crossing 4th Avenue at 32nd Street in Brooklyn. According to the police report, the SUV turned right as the woman crossed with the signal. The vehicle’s bumper hit her head, causing severe bleeding. The report states, “The driver’s view was blocked. He saw too late.” The listed contributing factor is 'View Obstructed/Limited.' The driver’s action—turning with limited visibility—led to the crash. The pedestrian was injured at the intersection while following the signal. No other contributing factors were cited in the report.
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Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4502712,
NYC Open Data,
Accessed 2025-06-15
A garbage truck followed a man on a bike down 9th Avenue. His helmet cracked. His head struck. He was ejected, crushed. The truck rolled on, undamaged. The cyclist died in the street. Metal and flesh met. Only one survived.
A 35-year-old man riding a bike south on 9th Avenue was killed when a garbage truck, also heading south, struck him. According to the police report, 'His helmet cracked. His head struck. He was ejected, crushed. The truck bore no damage. He died in the street.' The cyclist suffered fatal head and crush injuries. The truck driver, a 62-year-old man, was not injured. No contributing factors or driver errors were specified in the police data. The report notes the cyclist wore a helmet, which cracked on impact. The crash left the truck undamaged and ended the cyclist’s life on the roadway.
- Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4525008, NYC Open Data, Accessed 2025-06-15
SUV Turns, Strikes Pedestrian With Head-On Impact▸A Ford SUV turned right at 4th Avenue and 32nd Street. The driver’s view was blocked. The bumper hit a 61-year-old woman crossing with the light. She fell. Blood pooled. The street bore witness to another wound.
A 61-year-old woman was struck by a Ford SUV while crossing 4th Avenue at 32nd Street in Brooklyn. According to the police report, the SUV turned right as the woman crossed with the signal. The vehicle’s bumper hit her head, causing severe bleeding. The report states, “The driver’s view was blocked. He saw too late.” The listed contributing factor is 'View Obstructed/Limited.' The driver’s action—turning with limited visibility—led to the crash. The pedestrian was injured at the intersection while following the signal. No other contributing factors were cited in the report.
-
Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4502712,
NYC Open Data,
Accessed 2025-06-15
A Ford SUV turned right at 4th Avenue and 32nd Street. The driver’s view was blocked. The bumper hit a 61-year-old woman crossing with the light. She fell. Blood pooled. The street bore witness to another wound.
A 61-year-old woman was struck by a Ford SUV while crossing 4th Avenue at 32nd Street in Brooklyn. According to the police report, the SUV turned right as the woman crossed with the signal. The vehicle’s bumper hit her head, causing severe bleeding. The report states, “The driver’s view was blocked. He saw too late.” The listed contributing factor is 'View Obstructed/Limited.' The driver’s action—turning with limited visibility—led to the crash. The pedestrian was injured at the intersection while following the signal. No other contributing factors were cited in the report.
- Motor Vehicle Collisions – CrashID 4502712, NYC Open Data, Accessed 2025-06-15