Bahamas: Mother gets one-year jail term after son dies trapped in car window

Bahamas: A 22-year-old mother has been sentenced to one year in prison for negligently causing the death of her two-year-old child in August 2023. According to the information, the boy died on August 12 after his neck became trapped in the automatic window of the car which his parents were operating.  

According to the information, the mother Sabrina Henry received her sentence as part of a plea agreement earlier this week, where she acknowledged her responsibility for the death of her son Jeremiah Thurston. It is reported that the female was crying throughout her court session.  

At the time of the incident, the family was out on the road when the young boy lost his life, and his parents remained unaware of the tragedy for several minutes.  

Henry along with her partner Demargio Thurston were unaware of the incident until they were alerted by other drivers. Unfortunately, they said it was too late to save their child as he was already dead.  

The child was rushed to the Princess Maragaret Hospital in the Bahamas, but he was pronounced dead on arrival by a medical doctor. Since then, the child’s parents were in custody and were being blamed for his death.  

While serving her sentence, Henry is expected to undergo counselling and will be placed on probation for a total period of one year even after her release from prison.  

Meanwhile, Justice Neil Brathwaite, during the hearing, expressed his hope that this experience would assist her in moving forward with her life. He outlined that considering what has happened to the child, they have already endured enough suffering.  

Notably, Thurston, the father of the child, also faces charges of negligence related to the death of his son and he embraced Henry before she was taken away in handcuffs by the police officials. The husband is also scheduled to appear in court again on September 25, 2025.  

Henry was represented by Nathan Smith while Keith Seymour represented Demargio Thurston.