The Chapman Family

Steven Curtis Chapman's 5-year-old daughter Maria Sue was struck and killed Wednesday by a sport utility vehicle driven by her brother, authorities said.

Hit in the driveway of the family's home Wednesday afternoon by a Toyota Land Cruiser driven by her teenage brother, Maria was rushed to Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, where she later died said hospital spokeswoman Laurie Holloway.

The brother, whose name and exact age weren't given, apparently did not see the girl, a Tennessee Highway Patrol spokesperson said in a recent article. No charges are expected. Maria Sue Chapman was playing in the area with several other children when the accident occured.

"It looks like a tragic accident," said the spokesperson.

Several family members witnessed the accident, which happened in Williamson County just south of Nashville.

In a statement, Velvet Kelm, a publicist for Chapman, said Maria was the Chapmans' youngest daughter.

Chapman, who is originally from Paducah, Ky., and his wife have promoted international adoption and have three daughters from China, including Maria. They also have three biological children.

The singer's Web site says the couple was persuaded by their oldest daughter to adopt a girl from China. The experience led the family to adopt two more children and create Shaohannah's Hope, a foundation and ministry to financially assist thousands of couples in adoption.

The Chapmans did missionary work at Chinese orphanages in 2006 and 2007, according to the Web site.

"After our first trip to China, my wife and I knew our lives were changing — our eyes and hearts were opening to how big God really is, and we have wanted to experience more of that," Chapman says on the Web site.

"We've really wondered whether or not we should just go to China and stay there. But I don't think so. I believe God is saying, 'I want you to go, get your heart broken, your eyes opened, and then take this story back to the church in America and around the world.'"

The 45-year-old singer also has released a book about being a father titled "Cinderella: The Love of Daddy and his Princess." He has won five Grammy awards and 54 Dove awards from the Gospel Music Association, according to Kelm.