Inset, left to right: Nyomi Summers (Family photo/WSOC) and Khaliyal Burney (Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office). Background: The road where Burney allegedly struck and killed Summers (Google Maps).
A tragic accident unfolded in North Carolina when a 23-year-old man, allegedly speeding through a residential area, struck and killed an 8-year-old girl who was riding her bike to a friend’s house for a sleepover. The driver then reportedly fled the scene.
Last week, authorities took Khaliyal Burney into custody. According to court documents, he faces a charge of misdemeanor death by motor vehicle for the death of young Nyomi Summers. Additional charges against Burney include driving with a revoked license, lacking liability insurance, failure to register his vehicle, and using a fictitious registration.
Nyomi Summers was enjoying a bike ride in a north Charlotte neighborhood on a Saturday evening while visiting a friend when she was struck by Burney’s 2006 Chrysler 3000 sedan. This incident was reported by local NBC affiliate WCNC.
Tragically, the child succumbed to her injuries after being transported to a nearby hospital, officials confirmed.
Legal documents reveal that Burney was allegedly driving “unlawfully and willingly” at a speed of about 35 mph in an area restricted to 25 mph, a violation which is cited as the direct cause of Nyomi’s death.
Upon arriving at the scene, officers discovered Summers lying on the roadway next to her damaged bicycle, providing a grim testament to the accident’s severity.
Surveillance footage from a nearby home allegedly showed the driver of the Chrysler 3000 revving the vehicle’s engine multiple times then accelerating just before the fatal collision, Charlotte ABC affiliate WSOC reported.
Neighbors described a chaotic and heartbreaking scene in the moments surrounding the crash, with several saying they heard the impact from inside their homes.
“And I heard it when he hit her,” a neighbor told WCNC. “I heard the bump of a body. He just went down the street … he didn’t even put on no brakes.”
Others said the area is filled with children and that drivers are expected to slow down, especially on residential streets where kids frequently ride bikes and play.
“The way this neighborhood is, the way the streets are made, you shouldn’t be driving all fast like that down here,” another neighbor told WCNC.
“I heard him when he took off,” Mae Lynn, another neighbor told Spectrum News. “I heard him when he hit her body. I heard him when he went down, yielded and kept on going. Then, they were out here calling him and telling him he had hit a baby in the street.”
Lynn also claimed Burney had a history of driving too fast in the neighborhood.
“Someone hollers at him every day to slow down, because he comes through here like that all the time,” she told the station.
Another witness described seeing children scatter moments before the collision.
“The other two kids got out the street. Nyomi wasn’t quick enough with her little legs,” the woman told WSOC. “She had eyes on her. She wasn’t unattended. She did not run in front of no car. That car hit her like she was an animal. It kept going until he probably got a phone call saying he hit that baby.”
Following the impact, Burney reportedly returned to the scene. Investigators later said he was not impaired at the time of the crash.
In the days since the crash, a memorial has grown near the scene as community members mourn the loss of the young girl.
Neighbors described Summers as a child who regularly played in the area and was well known in the neighborhood.
“She didn’t have to lose her life because of a reckless driver,” one person said. “That could have been anybody.”
Burney was released after posting $1,000 bond and is scheduled to appear in court on June 5, according to court records.
