Young boy dies after being hit by car outside Benicia senior center

BENICIA, Calif. (KGO) -- Some Bay Area residents are bringing flowers and balloons to the scene where a a 4-year-old boy died after a parked car ended up reversing and killing him in Benicia.

They're calling it a tragedy all the way around and have a warning for parents.

The 4-year-old boy was killed around 4:45 p.m. outside the Benicia Senior Center at a birthday party.

"I am just so sad I have a grandkid who is four, I can't even imagine I am sad," Benicia resident Vivian Salas said.

Police say a 12-year-old boy went out to a car to charge his phone. While he was in the car, it suddenly went into reverse, hit and killed the little boy.

A 13-year-old standing near him was also hurt, but is OK. Police say parents need to think twice before handing their keys to a child.

"It's just important to remember that giving kids access to cars, cars are a machine and they can definitely inflict injury if not supervised. So it's just one thing to take into consideration when allowing a child to have access to a car," Benicia Police Department Ofc. Stephanie Polizziani said.

Officers haven't said whether the kid was sitting in the car and whether the car was turned on.

They don't know the relationship between the kids, just that there were all at a birthday party.

Police are calling this an accident and no charges are expected to be filed.

They don't know who was celebrating a birthday. The attendees all live in Contra Costa County, not Benicia.

They've put the families in touch with grief counselors.

Salas wants them to know Benicia is grieving with them. "Just that I'm thinking about them, that the whole town is thinking about them, and we're praying for them," she said.

Police did a safety check on the car.

The two teens injured were taken to the hospital to be treated, but they were released a few hours later.