The driver in a Friday crash in which her one year old child was ejected over an 18-foot I-95 sound barrier has been charged with child neglect, culpable negligence, and multiple traffic violations.
Had one-year-old Jacob Mentor not miraculously survived his little flight onto a Pompano Beach patio, it could have been a whole lot worse for his mother: Roseline Jean-Baptiste, 28, hadn't put either Jacob or his 3-year-old sister Shaniece in a car seat.
Instead, both children were in the back seat of her Chevy Cobalt, illegaly wearing only seatbelts. When Jean-Baptiste swerved on I-95 to avoid a tire, her car rolled several times, launching Jacob over a wall that dropped 18 feet onto the property of Jan and Bob Blount.
The Blounts were playing cards in the backyard when it rained baby.
"There's a major accident on 95..." Jan Blount told the 911 operator. "The child flew into my back yard."
Little Jacob astonishingly escaped relatively uninjured. So did sister Shaniece, who had remained inside the car along with her mother. Jean-Baptiste is still hospitalized at North Broward Medical Center, and told the Sun-Sentinel she feels "okay" but may need spleen surgery.
She also may need to take a number at Motor Vehicles. In addition to criminal charges of neglect and negligence, troopers have cited Jean-Baptiste for not restraining children and driving without a valid driver's license.
