Overview

• New York State Police identified the victim as Christopher Williams, 15, who was struck by an eastbound vehicle near Exit 13 on the Southern State Parkway around 1 p.m. Thursday and later died at Franklin General Hospital.
• Williams attended The Martin De Porres School for Exceptional Children in Elmont, and his family says he left campus unsupervised before the crash.
• Family members say the school called his mother asking about his whereabouts, then a detective later phoned to request identification of his body, and they are publicly demanding answers.
• The school issued a statement expressing grief, offering counseling to students and staff, and initiating a top-down review of internal procedures and supervision practices.
• A day earlier, a 5-year-old at Rockville Centre’s Riverside Elementary reportedly climbed a fence and walked home, prompting the district to retrain staff and review fencing, gates, and headcount protocols.