A mother has been detained after a 19-month-old child was observed flying out of a car as it made a turn at an intersection in Orange County.
The Fullerton Police Department said in a statement Monday that they were aware of a video circulating on social media earlier this week showing the toddler falling out of a black SUV as it turned onto Malvern Avenue from Euclid Street in Fullerton.
Related posts
Officials clarified that the incident occurred between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m. on Jan. 20 and that no requests for assistance were received regarding the child’s fall. Three days later, at the same intersection, a group of fleeing jewel thieves crashed.
The clip, shot from the dashcam of a vehicle moving in the opposite direction, shows the SUV’s front passenger side door sliding open as it turns left from Malvern into Euclid.
When the toddler fell out, the SUV halted abruptly—Fullerton police reported that the driver “nearly caused a traffic collision” with the vehicle behind it—and a woman was observed hurrying from the driver’s seat to where the child had fallen. She had picked up the child and returned to the vehicle before the video ended.
Four days later, a witness contacted police and reported the event. An investigation led to a residence in La Habra, where the SUV, child, and woman shown in the video were found.
“The female, identified as Jacqueline Hernandez, a 35-year-old resident of La Habra and the child’s mother, was placed under arrest and booked at the Fullerton City Jail for felony child abuse,” police said Monday.
Authorities said the toddler had injuries “consistent with the fall” and was hospitalized. They are fully anticipated to recover.
If you have any information that will help the investigation, please contact Fullerton Police Department Sensitive Crimes Unit Detective H. Rios at 714-738-6782 or [email protected]. To provide anonymous tips, call Orange County Crime Stoppers at 1-855-847-6227.
