Driver Held After Son, 4, Falls Onto Freeway

Brian Wheeler, 27, of Los Angeles, was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and driving under the influence of alcohol after his 4-year-old son hurtled from the window of Wheeler’s moving pickup truck on the Simi Valley Freeway, Los Angeles police reported Tuesday.

The boy, Christopher Wheeler, suffered a broken collarbone, said officials at Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles. He was in good condition in protective custody, hospital officials said.

Police reported that the boy fell from the window of the eastbound truck Monday about 5:30 p.m. Witnesses told police the truck stopped and the boy’s mother, Susan Wheeler, 29, got out to retrieve him, Detective Mike Houchen said. The truck sped off but crashed into a fence at the bottom of the Glenoaks Boulevard off-ramp, Houchen said.

Houchen said it had not been determined whether the child was deliberately thrown from the vehicle. Wheeler, 27, was held without bail at the Van Nuys Jail, where he was undergoing a polygraph examination, police said.

Earlier reports from the California Highway Patrol said that the parents of the boy were arguing at the time of the incident.

Brian Wheeler, Christopher’s 6-year-old brother, was also taken into protective custody and both children were placed in the care of the Los Angeles County Department of Children’s Services.