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Man charged with murder in California traffic crash that killed 4-year-old boy

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A California man has been charged with murder in connection with a road rage shooting that killed a 4-year-old boy last week, prosecutors said.

Byron Burkhart, 29, is accused of pulling next to a vehicle and firing eight shots into the car while driving on Sierra Highway in Lancaster on Friday, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office said.

Gor Adamyan, 4, was traveling with his parents when he was shot once while sitting in the back seat of the car, prosecutors said. He was taken to a local hospital where he died. His mother and father were uninjured.

Burkhart was charged Tuesday with one count of murder, two counts of attempted murder, one count of shooting into an occupied vehicle and five counts of possession of a firearm by a felon, prosecutors said.

PHOTO: Gor Adamyan, 4, pictured in this undated photo, was shot in a traffic accident in Lancaster, California on December 15, 2023 and died in a hospital on December 16, 2023, according to police. (Courtesy of the Adamyan family)PHOTO: Gor Adamyan, 4, pictured in this undated photo, was shot in a traffic accident in Lancaster, California on December 15, 2023 and died in a hospital on December 16, 2023, according to police. (Courtesy of the Adamyan family)

PHOTO: Gor Adamyan, 4, pictured in this undated photo, was shot in a traffic accident in Lancaster, California on December 15, 2023 and died in a hospital on December 16, 2023, according to police. (Courtesy of the Adamyan family)

“Our hearts grieve over the tragic loss of a young life in such a devastating and senseless act of road rage,” Los Angeles County District Attorney Gascón said in a statement. “A family is suffering unimaginable pain this holiday season.”

The victim vehicle’s camera allegedly captured the license plate number of Burkhart’s vehicle during the incident, prosecutors said.

MORE: Family of 4-year-old killed in California road rage shooting calls for justice: spokesman

He was arraigned Sunday at the Los Angeles County Jail and is scheduled to be arraigned Jan. 22. Prosecutors said they would ask that he be held on $5.075 million bail.

If convicted as charged, Burkhart faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Burkhart was out with his girlfriend at the time of the incident, prosecutors said.

Alexandria Gentile, 27, was also booked into the Los Angeles County Jail on suspicion of murder in connection with the shooting, the sheriff’s department said in a statement to ABC News. She was released Tuesday afternoon, online jail records show. The public prosecutor’s office has not filed any charges against her.

Man charged with murder in California traffic crash that killed 4-year-old boy originally appeared on abcnews.go.com

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