Grandma’s final photo of granddaughter minutes before she’s killed

A woman has shared a picture depicting the final moments of her granddaughter’s life shortly before the three-year-old’s tragic passing.

According to devastating reports, Scarlett Jensen was killed in a hit-and-run on October 7, 2022. Along with her 2-year-old brother, Henry, she was being minded by her grandmother as her mother, Samantha Jensen, and father were out of town for a wedding.

Yet when the three of them were out walking in the family’s private driveway in Oldtown, Idaho, something unthinkable happened. A Chevy Tahoe came racing down the road, running over Scarlett, her grandmother, and her brother.

“My mother was waving her hands, screaming for him to stop and she tried to grab my children to move them out of the way but he was going too fast,” Samantha Jensen recalled.

“Scarlett was killed almost instantly and my mom and Henry were critically injured.”

The suspect driving the Chevy fled the scene on foot before ultimately being apprehended several miles away. He is now serving a ten year prison sentence.

“Henry was life-flighted to the children’s hospital where they found a fractured spine, six broken ribs, a broken jaw, a broken collarbone, a liver laceration and several other injuries,” Samantha told PEOPLE.

“My mom had several broken bones but was able to be released from the hospital.”

She added: “Henry spent a week in the PICU before he was stable enough to come home, and he had a full body brace on for 10 weeks.”

In the weeks that followed, the family was enveloped in grief, but there was one small moment of reprieve when Samantha found a seemingly innocuous photo her mother had taken of Scarlett shortly before her death.

“My mom lost her phone when they were hit and it took us a while to find it, so when we finally did I was going through pictures and found that one,” Jensen says. “I looked at the timestamp and realized it was only five minutes before her declared time of death, so it must have been taken seconds before the person hit them.”

According to PEOPLE, the image in question was taken when Scarlett’s grandmother had taken her two grandchildren out to get ice cream.

“When they arrived home to our back driveway, Scarlett wanted to get out of the stroller to pick flowers,” Samantha explained. “That’s when my mom took the last picture I have of her alive.”

The heartbroken mother explained that her days now differ. Some are naturally tougher than others, but the family is doing its best to tackle their enormous grief.

“Some days, it feels like I am drowning, and some days I am able to tread water,” she told PEOPLE. “My whole family is putting in a lot of work in therapy and trying to heal as much as possible. My faith in the Lord has saved my life and helped me tremendously in my healing journey.”

At first the devastated mother found it difficult to look at the final picture of her little girl. 2 years on from her passing, though, Samantha came to realize that the image is a token of a beautiful life.

“I am so incredibly thankful to have that photo,” she told PEOPLE. “It captures the peaceful feeling of her last moments, the beauty she was surrounded by when she took her last breaths. I will forever picture her happy and carefree, picking flowers with her best friend and Meemaw.”

Related Posts

Golden Globes 2026: The Red Carpet Looks Everyone Is Talking About

The Golden Globe Awards returned to Los Angeles on January 11, 2026, marking their 83rd ceremony with a familiar blend of celebration and anticipation. Held at the…

When my “mute” grandson finally spoke, his first whisper at my kitchen table shattered our quiet babysitting week—and unleashed the most terrifying seven days of my life

My name is Lucinda Morrison, and I was sixty-six years old the October my world turned upside down in our quiet little town just outside Columbus, Ohio….

I Found a Diamond Ring on a Supermarket Shelf and Returned It to Its Owner — the Next Day, a Man in a Mercedes Showed Up at My Door

When a widowed father of four finds a diamond ring lying in a grocery store aisle, he ends up making a choice that costs him nothing, yet…

U.S. State Prepares for First Execution of a Woman in More Than Two Centuries, as Shocking Details of Her Brutal Crime Emerge and Renew National Debates Over Capital Punishment, Legal Ethics, Gender in the Justice System, and the Circumstances Surrounding Her Historic, Controversial Death Sentence.

Tennessee is moving closer to carrying out the execution of Christa Gail Pike, which would mark the first execution of a woman in the state in more…

Republicans Move to Expand House Majority Through Aggressive Redistricting Push

Away from campaign rallies and televised debates, the political map of the United States is being reshaped through a quieter process. District lines—often revised with little public…

At 74, Jay Leno planning for death, leaves chunk of cash to cars – ‘no one lives forever’

Jay Leno, the 74-year-old comedian and former host of “The Tonight Show,” is preparing for his farewell from the spotlight. With a passion for cars that has…