Background: The scene of the crime near the intersection of Rhode Island Street and 14th Street in Buffalo, New York, on Oct. 2, 2024 (WGRZ/YouTube). Inset: Sasiya Davis-Johnson (Erie County District Attorney”s Office).
A former garbage truck driver from Buffalo, New York, has received her sentencing after a tragic incident in which she “recklessly” reversed her vehicle, hitting a teenage pedestrian and causing him severe injuries.
Sasiya Davis-Johnson, aged 48, was sentenced on Thursday to three years of probation following her guilty plea in October to charges of third-degree assault and reckless driving, both misdemeanors. The Erie County District Attorney’s Office indicated she could have faced a maximum of 364 days in jail for these offenses.
The incident occurred on October 2, 2024, when Davis-Johnson was operating a garbage truck for the Buffalo Department of Public Works. It was around 8:16 a.m., a time when many children were making their way to school, near the intersection of Rhode Island Street and 14th Street.
As a 17-year-old student was crossing Rhode Island Street, Davis-Johnson inadvertently drove the truck in reverse, moving against the flow of the one-way street, according to the DA’s office.
The garbage truck struck the teenager, and authorities reported that Davis-Johnson “recklessly caused physical injuries” to him. Even after 14 months, the young victim remains hospitalized, paralyzed from the waist down, has lost a leg, and has undergone over 30 surgeries, as detailed by his attorney, Charles Desmond, to local ABC affiliate WKBW.
“This is a 60,000-pound truck that ran him over and then went forward, running him over again,” Desmond explained to reporters, as reported by WKBW.
In January, the teenager’s family sued the City of Buffalo, Davis-Johnson, and another city worker over the incident, the outlet added.
During the sentencing hearing, Davis-Johnson’s attorney pleaded for leniency, arguing she had “never been in trouble before this happened” and was remorseful.
Desmond said her reckless actions may have been compounded by inadequate training and faulty equipment.
“We know that the city did not properly train her. We know there was a spotter in the garbage truck that could have been out guiding, looking behind the truck. He did not get out of the truck. She did not order him out of the truck. We also know that the backup camera on the garbage truck was broken and disabled,” he said.
Davis-Johnson is no longer employed by the City of Buffalo Department of Public Works, the DA’s office said. Authorities also noted that she was offered the “reduced plea” of the misdemeanor charges, with the “consent of the victim.”
