A mother told her 8-year-old daughter to crawl under the train to reach the opposite side, where she could catch a bus. Upon following her mother’s instruction, the little girl met her unfortunate demise. The mother, identified as Joy Frances Collins, has been sentenced to 6 years in prison in connection to her daughter’s death, per court records gathered by People. She was arrested in December 2018 in Fresno, California.
Eight-year-old Joyanna Harris, died moments later, police said, after following her 9-year-old brother, who had just crawled under the train, leaving him injured. Collins was sentenced on Tuesday after she was found guilty of two counts of child abuse and endangerment in October, per court records.
KFSN reported that at the time of the sentence, Collins had pleaded with the judge to help her avoid prison time for the crime. She allegedly said in court, “There’s not a day that goes by that I don’t regret any of that, and I do,” adding, “And I beg for your mercy so I won’t have to go into a prison.” According to People, KFSN also reported that Collins’ son who had survived the ordeal was in the custody of his grandparents.
Additionally, Fresno police reported at the time of Collins’ arrest that she allegedly told her daughter to “hurry up” while instructing her to crawl under the train.
Disclaimer: If you suspect or wish to report a case of any form of child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org.