LANCASTER : Boy, 4, Dies in Crash; Mother Arrested

A 4-year-old Lancaster boy was killed when his mother drove her car past a stop sign and struck a city road grader, Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies said.

Charmaine Lee, 29, the boy’s mother, was believed to have been under the influence of alcohol when the collision occurred at 12:20 p.m. Tuesday, said Lt. Ralph Martin. She was arrested on suspicion of vehicular homicide and was being held on $20,000 bail at Sybil Brand Institute for Women in Los Angeles.

Robert Lett died at the scene of the accident, said Martin, who added that the child was wearing a seat belt when the accident occurred.

Lee’s three other children, who also were in the car, sustained minor injuries, Martin said.

The woman failed to stop for the stop sign as she traveled north on 30th Street East at Avenue K in Lancaster, Martin said. The road grader was driven by Clifford Jones, a city of Lancaster employee, who was uninjured, Martin said.