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There were barely any words spoken between Shelmar Adams and his friends. Their tear-streaked faces spoke volumes.
Clad in an ill-fitting pinstriped suit, Adams was on the cusp of turning himself over to the New York City Police Department Highway Patrol on Friday.

According to the Queens District Attorney’s Office, Adams, 30, is charged with leaving the scene of a felony without reporting it and third degree aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle. According to the criminal complaint, Adam’s license was suspended.

Jordan McLean, 5, was killed at the intersection of 164th Place and 109th Avenue a little after midnight Thursday morning.

Initial reports state that Adams was drag racing when the 2004 blue BMW he was driving hit a 2003 brown Ford Escape at 12:07 a.m. Jordan was ejected from the vehicle on impact and pronounced dead at 12:53 a.m.

In a statement, Jordan’s aunt thanked the community for their efforts.

“In this our greatest time of need we never expected this kind of response. Everyone from the staff of PS 40 to the clergy. How can we ever thank you?”

“He is a good kid,” Frank Smith said of Adams. Smith said Adams spent the ensuing evening in anguish and called him crying.

“He knew he had to turn himself in,” Smith said.
Smith refutes the claim that Adams was drag racing. Although he hasn’t heard Adams’ version of what transpired, he said he’s heard from numerous people that the Ford Escape traveling northbound ran the stop sign and the BMW traveling east, slammed into the SUV.

“From my understanding the lady ran the stop sign,” Smith said of the car Jordan was traveling in. “She came out of nowhere.”

He also said the street was pockmarked with road defects. With a row of cars on both sides so it would be impossible for Adams to have been drag racing.

Rueben Wills, Sen. Shirley Huntley’s chief of staff, helped facilitate Adams turning himself in. initially, Adams stayed at the scene of the accident. Wills went on to say that Adams helped the women out of the Ford and ran when he heard police sirens because he had an open drug case.

According to sources close to the case, Adams has had nine previous arrests with two cases still pending. In the two open cases, Adams is charged with criminal mischief for throwing a brick through his girlfriend’s windshield. In the other case, he is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance and unlawfully operating a motor vehicle on a public highway.

On Friday, a handful of Adams’ friends gathered at the Dunkin Donuts on 187th Place and Jamaica Avenue. A slight murmur rose up as they bowed their heads and Rev. Darryl Frazier of Majority Baptist Church prayed.

Frazier said he asked God to give Adams, “strength and courage,” and for his “friends and family to be supportive to him in this period of time.”

After the prayer, the goodbyes were solemn and tearful.
Adams was arraigned on Saturday, and bail was set at $15,000.

In the wake of the tragedy, the community has banded together to help Jordan’s family with funeral arrangements.
Wills stated that he was proud of the outpouring of support and generosity from the community.

“The support has been balanced and genuine with all caps,” Wills said.

Local clergy has responded with gusto. They have picked up collections and made donations such as Pastor Jeffery Thompson of Amity Baptist Church offering up his sanctuary for the service.

The service will be held on Tuesday, May 20, with the viewing from 4 to 6 p.m. and the funeral from 6 to 8 p.m at 164-18 108th Ave. in Jamaica, Queens at the church.
A fund, dubbed the Compassion Fund of South East Queens, was also set up to aid others in similar tragedies.
“This is now being established so that those who are met with tragedies such as this will have some type of aid,” Frazier said. “We may not be able to pay for everything but sometimes the heart makes up for the pocket.”
To inquire or donate to the fund call (917)939-7767 or go to any Chase Bank.