Man fatally shoots 4-year-old in road rage incident as boy’s family was heading to buy groceries

A California man has been charged with murder in a road rage shooting in which he opened fire on a family driving to buy groceries, killing a 4-year-old boy in the backseat, prosecutors said.

Byron Burkhart, 29, was charged with one count of murder, two counts of attempted murder, one count of shooting at an occupied vehicle and five counts of possession of a firearm by a felon, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office announced Tuesday.

The shooting happened on Dec. 15 when Burkhart was driving with his girlfriend and allegedly cut off the victims’ vehicle while driving on part of Sierra Highway in Lancaster, in northern Los Angeles County, prosecutors said.

Inside that car was a mother, father, and their 4-year-old son, identified by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner as Gor Adamyan.

Burkhart allegedly “engaged in aggressive driving maneuvers and road rage,” prosecutors said.

An online fundraiser to support the family said Burkhart allegedly cut off the Adamyan family’s vehicle, initiated a pursuit through streets, then pulled up and started shooting. 

He fired eight shots into the car, the district attorney’s office said. 

Gor was struck once in the backseat. His parents were not hit in the barrage of bullets, according to officials.

The child was transported to a nearby hospital where he died, prosecutors said. 

Gor’s family’s car had a camera that allegedly captured Burkhart’s vehicle license plate during the shooting, the DA’s news release said.

District Attorney George Gascón called the shooting a “senseless act of road rage,” adding, “A family is facing unimaginable pain during what should be a joyous time this holiday season.”

Burkhart is being held on $2 million bond and will be arraigned Jan. 22.

If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of life in prison. NBC News has reached out to the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s Office for comment.