Overview
- A horse-drawn carriage bolted near Cherry Hill on June 17, throwing passengers and fatally injuring 18-year-old tourist Romanch Mahajan, whose death was ruled an accidental blunt-force trauma by the city medical examiner.
- Witnesses and the teen’s family say the driver stepped away to take a photo before the horse bolted and the teen jumped down to help his mother, who had fallen from the carriage.
- Transport Workers Union Local 100 suspended operations and closed the stables while the carriage owner has suspended the driver and plans to retire the 7-year-old horse involved.
- The fatality follows recent incidents including a carriage horse death earlier in June and is cited by the Central Park Conservancy and some officials as reason to advance Ryder's Law, a bill that would phase out carriages and provide transition support for drivers.
- NYPD and forensic reviews are ongoing and necropsy results from the earlier horse death at Cornell are being examined, with debates focusing on whether park vegetation, handling practices, or other factors led to the recent string of incidents.