A 13-year-old boy is fighting for his life in a Detroit hospital after a car struck the e-bike he and his 15-year-old sister were riding near Inkster Road and Clarita in Redford Township earlier this week. Kanaei Harris suffered a brain bleed and hit his head hard enough to pass out at the scene, while his sister, Romance Brooks, sustained a liver laceration and four fractured ribs. The driver was cited in connection with the crash and could face additional charges given the severity of the injuries.
The siblings had been riding to a 7-Eleven last Saturday when they were hit, according to ClickOnDetroit. Neither Kanaei nor Romance was wearing a helmet at the time, their mother, 32-year-old Raven Bryant, told the outlet. A bystander called 911 and stayed with the pair, and strangers pulled Kanaei out of the street before help arrived.
A Medically Fragile Boy Now Fighting for His Life
Kanaei's injuries are especially serious because he already lives with polycystic kidney disease and undergoes dialysis three times a week, according to the same report. The crash damaged his dialysis port, and he now needs surgery to repair it while his medical team works out a new dialysis plan around his other injuries. Bryant said Kanaei is not currently responsive and remains in a neck brace, and she fears he could be a completely different person once he recovers.
Just days before the crash, Kanaei had received a Make-A-Wish grant and was preparing to travel to Disney in California, the outlet reported. Romance, meanwhile, escaped with scrapes and bruises in addition to her broken ribs and liver injury. The family has asked witnesses and anyone with camera footage of the crash to come forward.
Investigation Continues as Charges Loom
Redford Township Police reported that the crash remains under investigation. The driver was cited at the scene, and police say more serious charges are possible depending on how the investigation into the severity of the injuries develops, per the report.
This is not the first time Redford Township police have had to confront the dangers of youth riders on motorized two-wheelers. In April, Redford Township Police Chief Jennifer Mansfield stressed that off-road motorized vehicles are barred from public streets and parks, a warning issued after residents raised repeated complaints about unhelmeted young riders and following a previous fatal teen crash in the township, as reported by ClickOnDetroit.
A Pattern Playing Out Across Wayne County
According to Hoodline, the Redford crash comes weeks after a 13-year-old was killed in Huron Township when his e-bike was struck by a car, another fatal collision involving a similarly aged rider within the same county. Wayne County already records the highest number of bicycle-vehicle crashes and injuries per capita of any county in the seven-county Metro Detroit region, according to Michigan State Police crash data compiled by Drawing Detroit. Statewide, bicycle-involved crashes jumped 20 percent year-over-year to 1,773 incidents in 2024, resulting in 29 bicyclist deaths, per Michigan State Police data reported by FOX 2 Detroit.
Medical researchers have flagged why these crashes tend to be so severe for young riders. The American College of Surgeons has noted that American e-bikes typically carry 750-watt motors, triple the maximum wattage allowed in Europe, producing high-energy impact forces in collisions that closely resemble motor vehicle trauma rather than typical bicycle accidents. The same organization's June 2025 position statement found that more than 20,000 e-bike injuries occur annually nationwide, with head trauma the most common injury and only about one-third of injured riders wearing helmets. A multi-year study led by Rady Children's Health and published by CHOC similarly found that e-bike trauma visits to pediatric emergency departments have surged, now surpassing car-versus-pedestrian collisions as a leading cause of pediatric trauma, with speeds above 20 mph tied to significantly worse internal and head injuries in children.
Neighboring Communities Move to Tighten Rules
Michigan law currently requires helmets only for riders under 18 on Class 3 e-bikes, which offer motor assistance up to 28 mph, under Section 257.662a of the state vehicle code — leaving no statewide helmet mandate for Class 1 or 2 models. State lawmakers introduced House Bill 6166 in early July, which would require riders under 18 to hold a special restricted license, issuable starting at age 15, to operate Class 2 or Class 3 e-bikes on public roads; the bill remains pending in the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
Some nearby communities aren't waiting on Lansing. Dearborn Heights unanimously passed an ordinance in June banning all classes of e-bikes from city-owned property and parks and instituting a $200 police registration requirement, after officials there cited multiple child bone fractures and reckless riding in local parks, according to ClickOnDetroit. Whether Redford Township will pursue similar restrictions remains an open question as the investigation into Kanaei and Romance's crash continues.
