By Albert Amateau
An 8-year-old boy who was struck by a car in front of his home in the Robert Fulton Houses on 17th St. west of Ninth Ave. at 8 p.m. Fri., Oct. 5, died in St. Vincent’s Hospital at 5 a.m. the following morning.
Prince Harris, Jr., nicknamed Kumo, was playing in front of his building when he dashed into the street from between parked cars and was struck by a westbound Toyota Scion, police said.
The driver, 44, stopped after the collision and was not charged. Police said there was no criminality connected to the accident. Nevertheless, a group of distraught neighbors menaced the driver until police arrived after he phoned 911.
Jimmy Pelsey, president of the Robert Fulton Tenants Association, said on Tuesday that tenants and Community Board 4 have been asking the Department of Transportation for the past three years to put a speed bump in W. 17th St. between Ninth and 10th Aves.
“This street goes right into the West Side Highway and the cars come speeding down here,” Pelsey said. “Nobody listens to you until someone gets killed. There’s going to be more until we do something to slow the traffic.”
