COLUMBIA COUNTY– A 19-month old girl was killed in a car crash Tuesday morning, and police are investigating if she was properly strapped into a child safety seat.
An autopsy showed that little Emma Niznek showed no internal injuries or bruising that would be consistent with straps on a car seat.
Police say the girl’s grandmother, Janice Petroff, hit a utility pole and Emma was thrown from the SUV to the road, dying on impact.
When a child is properly secured during a crash, there may be bruising near the seat straps, according to experts.
Emma’s autopsy did not show these injuries, but police told WNEP the child was wearing a heavy winter coat.
Briar Creek Township Police are investigating whether the heavy coat was a factor in this crash but say it is far too early to come to any conclusions.
“What happens is when children have bulky clothes on and they are in their car seat, with the harness system it actually creates space between them and the harness,” said Sharron Yorke with Pennsylvania State Police.
Petroff is still in the hospital, in critical condition as of Thursday morning.
