LOCAL : N. Hollywood Boy, 15, Dies After Collapse; Attack Suspected

A 15-year-old North Hollywood boy died this morning after collapsing on the side of a street in what Los Angeles police believe could have been an attack, authorities said.

Detectives said witnesses saw Peter Ray running on Colfax Avenue just north of Burbank Boulevard about 3 p.m. Thursday when the boy suddenly collapsed. He remained unconscious and on a respirator until he died this morning at Northridge Hospital Medical Center, officials said.

An autopsy is expected to be conducted Saturday to determine what killed the boy, Detective Mike Coffey said.

Police found a tire iron on the ground near the area where Ray was running from, but there were no physical marks on the boy to indicate that he was struck, Coffey said. An examination at the hospital did not determine what occurred either, Coffey said.

“We are investigating it like it is an undetermined death, possibly by assault,” Coffey said. “I don’t want time to elapse and clues to be gone.”

Investigators this morning were looking for witnesses who might have seen the boy before he collapsed. Shortly before Ray was injured, he had visited his mother, who works at a May Co. department store on Burbank Boulevard, Coffey said.