Criminal Law
Man Charged with Murder After Forcing 5-Year-Old Out of Car
FORT MITCHELL, Ala. — An Alabama soldier was charged with reckless murder after allegedly forcing his girlfriend’s unruly 5-year-old son to get out of a car at night along a road where the boy was hit and killed by another vehicle, authorities said.
Army Sgt. Bryan Starr, 35, surrendered to officials in Russell County after being charged in the death of Austin Birdseye, Sheriff Heath Taylor told a news conference Monday.
Originally from Illinois, Starr is stationed at Fort Benning in Columbus, Georgia, the sheriff said. He and the child’s mother, Christina Birdseye, 33, share a home in southeast Alabama near the sprawling base.
Court records were not available Tuesday to show whether Starr had an attorney who could speak on his behalf.
