KHTS Radio Santa Clarita Radio – Santa Clarita News
A Hawthorne man was arrested after a young child was struck and killed in a 5 Freeway fatal crash in Santa Clarita Saturday morning.
The child, a female between the ages of 4 and 6 whose name has been withheld by authorities, was found by California Highway Patrol (CHP) officers at around 3:30 a.m. Saturday after being fatally hit by several vehicles on the 5 Freeway, according to Officer Josh Greengard, spokesperson with the CHP Newhall Office.
“[A] 911 caller reported they had struck an unknown stationary object, which was blocking the roadway on I-5 N/B Golden State Freeway at Weldon Canyon Road,” Greengard said. “CHP Newhall Area Officers arrived on scene to investigate the incident. It was determined that the unknown object was a child who had been struck by several vehicles, which caused fatal injuries.”
A suspect has been detained in relation to the incident.
Michael Branch, 39, from Hawthorne, was arrested Saturday on felony charges for child cruelty likely to produce death or great bodily injury. His bail was set at $100,000.
Officials did not release any additional information about the incident or Branch’s suspected involvement.
The incident remains under investigation.
The suspect is due in court Wednesday, according to Greengard.
Anyone with additional information is asked to contact Officer Branch at the CHP Newhall Office located on 28648 The Old Road in Valencia or by phone at (661) 600-1600 extension 1621.
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The story is confusing
Was he the one who struck her and called it in ??
Yes, Michael Branch is the one who called it in. It appears he was driving the first car to strike her, making this felony hit and run. If he had stopped and rendered assistance, she may have survived.
The question is, what was she doing there? Was she abducted? Did he know her?
NO. He did NOT hit her, the little girl was hanging out of the back of the SUV which has no window in the back and the girl fell out the back of the SUV and then she was hit by several cars. Her father did NOT call in to 911.
Yes, article leaves out much too much. Who was arrested? The driver who initially struck the child who was on a freeway WHEN PEOPLE ARE NOT TO BE ON A FREEWAY WALKING AROUND?? Or was the guy arrested the a-hole parent or person who allowed the child to get out and walk on to the freeway?
And WHY THE HELL would you arrest the first person to hit the child when, first, NO ONE expects people, let alone a young child, to be walking on a freeway, and, second, who also reported the incident to CHP??
WTH. The article is written to say that the first person to hit the child was arrested. Are they F-N crazy? And what happened to the person driving the vehicle that the children were allegedly in before FALLING out?
This is not good journalism. In fact, I don’t call it journalism at all.
Yes, please tell us why a child that age was on the 5 fwy??
Sometimes the reporting on this site is so confusing.
The father was arrested. I don’t think HE struck her. He was driving a car with nothing but plastic taped in place of the broken rear passenger window, and suposedly, the little girl, who is Autistic, ‘climbed out the window, ‘ and fell out of the car….and then 6 other cars struck her. The mother was arrested also, but has been released.
This article failed to mention ANY of this.