CLINTON HILL — Dozens of people gathered Sunday afternoon to remember a 28-year-old woman who was killed by a driver as she crossed the street to meet her husband.
Jake Stevens, was waiting for his wife of two years, Clara Heyworth, at DeKalb and Vanderbilt avenues on July 10, 2011 when she was struck.
Stevens rushed to her side as she lay in the street, but Heyworth died the next day.
Stevens spoke on behalf of his late wife at the memorial ceremony where members of traffic safety advocacy group Right of Way spray-painted a picture of flowers, angel's wings and the words "the song carries her as she was."
"She will be forever 28 years old, newly arrived in the U.S., newly married, full of life and passionate commitment and loved by all of us," he said to a crowd of dozens that gathered on the sidewalk.
He said that he initially did not want a memorial for Heyworth because he wanted to "remember her as she lived rather than how she died."
But over the years he realized that he doesn't get to choose how she was remembered.
"Our loved ones choose from the life that they lead how they want to be remembered," he said. "Our need for this memorial is built on our memories of our life with her."
Stevens also spoke of the failure of the NYPD and the Brooklyn DA's office to get a conviction in Heyworth's death.
The driver, Anthony Webb, 43, pleaded guilty to unlicensed driving and driving without an insurance card. He was fined $250 and ordered to complete a drunk driving course, according to Gothamist.
Webb was believed to be under the influence but evidence was thrown out because the 88th precinct police had not calibrated their breathalyzer since 2007, according to The New York Times.
"The police failed to investigate her death, the DA failed to prosecute and in doing so they failed all of us," he said. "There has not been and there will not be ever any justice for Clara."
The DA's office declined comment and the NYPD did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
