Cupertino Driver Accidentally Kills Boy, 5

On Wednesday, the Santa Clara County Coroner's identified the boy as Amartya Krishna Chinya.

An active, sometimes-mischievous 5-year-old, Amartya Chinya was riding his scooter before dinner Tuesday in a residential Cupertino cul-de-sac when he was accidentally struck by a neighbor's car.

The soon-to-be kindergartener at L.P. Collins Elementary School was conscious and speaking on the way to the Valley Medical Center, according to his father, but ended up bleeding too much, suffering liver damage, and ultimately dying of cardiac arrest just before midnight.

"It was just too much for his body," Arvind Chinya, an employee at IBM, who spoke to NBC Bay Area in a phone interview on Wednesday. "He was such an active 5-year-old. So full of life."

Chinya, who along with his wife, Mala, planned to hold a funeral service for their only son Wednesday afternoon, still don't know exactly what happened, other than a neighbor pulled out of a driveway on Vista Court about 7:15 p.m. and accidentally hit their son.

Chinya said he and his wife were having a cup of tea in the back yard, and Amartya, whose name means "immortal" in Sanskrit, was out in the front with other children. He had his helmet and knee pads on, according to his dad.

The Chinyas, who had recently moved from Sunnyvale to Cupertino for better schools, had been planning to go camping in Little Basin this weekend with about 100 families.

Santa Clara County Sheriff's Sgt. Jose Cardoza called the death "very sad," and added that the driver was cooperative and will not be arrested because investigators say it was accidental. 

Chinya is hoping that this tragic death will prompt parents to be more mindful of their children, and drivers to watch out for the many children playing outside during the summertime.

"We moved to this cul-de-sac because we thought it was safe," Chinya said. "I think it would have made more sense if one of us had been out front. I don't know if it would have changed anything, I don't know what more we could have done. But I know my son was loved. And everyone just needs to be more careful."

Contact Lisa Fernandez at 408-432-4758 or lisa.fernandez@nbcuni.com.

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