Mother was Charged with Manslaughter After Her 6-Year-Old Child Fell Out of a Car on the 5 Freeway

A mother was charged with manslaughter on Wednesday after her 6-year-old daughter died earlier this year. It was after falling out of a car and hitting the 5 Freeway close to the Newhall Pass.

The girl’s mother, Veronda R. Jones Gladney, 28, of Lancaster, was arrested on Wednesday. She is charged with two felonies and one misdemeanour, including manslaughter.

Ricardo Santiago Reports

Gladney was charged with one felony count and one misdemeanour count of child abuse that led to death, as well as one felony count of vehicular manslaughter.

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Michael Branch, the boyfriend of Gladney, was charged with one count of misdemeanour child abuse, according to officials.

According to Santiago, on July 6 both suspects entered a not guilty plea.

Saturday Night

Tanuneka Starnes, age 6, is thought to have jumped out of a car. It was on Saturday, July 2, on the northbound 5 Freeway near Weldon Canyon Road. The news is reported by CHP Office spokesman Officer Josh Greengard.

At the Weldon Canyon Road exit of the I-5 N/B Golden State Freeway, someone called 911. He said that they had hit a stationary object that they didn’t know what it was. It was blocking the road.

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Officers from the CHP’s Newhall Area Division were dispatched to the scene. According to the CHP, Starnes, who had been hit by multiple vehicles, was the mystery object.

The California Highway Patrol determined that the 6-year-old girl died because she fell out of the window of a 1999 Lincoln Navigator while it was in motion.

The Branch will likely reappear in Santa Clarita Superior Court on Monday, November 14.

On Wednesday, November 2, at the San Fernando courthouse, Gladney will allegedly be arraigned on charges of manslaughter and other offences.