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Girl Hurt by Runaway Car Is Released From Hospital : Accident: Three of the five children injured in the Saturday accident remain hospitalized.

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TIMES STAFF WRITER

One of the five children injured in a bizarre North Hollywood car accident was released from Childrens Hospital on Monday.

A doctor said she and another girl, brought to the same hospital, are both expected to fully recover from their injuries. Two other girls injured were recovering at UCLA Medical Center.

The children, ranging in age from 5 to 10, were injured on Saturday at a home in North Hollywood when a 2-year-old boy, alone in a car with the engine running, put the car in gear and it ran over them, trapping them underneath.

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Challenging earlier reports that the boy had been left in the car unattended, the boy’s father said Sunday that the toddler climbed into the unattended car by himself, locked the doors and moved the shift lever.

A hospital spokeswoman said that Janette Rodriguez, 10, left Children’s Hospital on Monday. Her brother, also injured in the accident, had been released Sunday.

Janette suffered multiple cuts and bruises, said Dr. Richard Reynolds, who treated her and Valeria Fernandez, 9, the other victim brought to Childrens Hospital.

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Both girls suffered from hemorrhaging in the upper body caused by the pressure from the weight of the car on their midsections.

In addition, Valeria suffered a broken collarbone, three broken ribs and a broken arm, all on the right side of her body. She also suffered some nerve damage in her left hand, Reynolds said. “If all goes well,” Reynolds said, Valeria could be released from the hospital as early as Wednesday.

At UCLA Medical Center, Guadalupe Rodriguez, 9, and Leslie Vega, 5, the other two girls injured in the accident, were in good condition and resting comfortably Monday, a hospital spokeswoman said.

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Leslie suffered a deep leg cut, and Guadalupe a chest injury.

Meanwhile, Los Angeles Police Department traffic investigators said they expect to decide today whether they will seek charges against Estela Lopez, the woman who police said left the car’s engine running while she left it to look for her purse.

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