Toddler Found Wandering In Roadway

WOODWARD, Okla. (AP) -- A toddler found walking in the middle of the road near a city intersection has been placed in protective custody, authorities said.<br/><br/>Dean Rieth and his brother were driving

Thursday, June 14th 2007, 1:09 pm

By: News On 6

WOODWARD, Okla. (AP) -- A toddler found walking in the middle of the road near a city intersection has been placed in protective custody, authorities said.

Dean Rieth and his brother were driving along the street about 10 a.m. Tuesday when they noticed the 1-year-old boy in the middle of the road.

"I didn't know what to think," Rieth said. "But I knew I had to do something."

Rieth said he jumped out of his vehicle in an attempt to stop traffic so that the baby would not be hit or run over by an oncoming vehicle.

He said the boy was wearing a dirty diaper and was covered in bug bites, but appeared to be healthy.

Officers arrived on the scene and took the boy to Woodward Regional Hospital, where he was examined and determined to be fine.

The boy was then released into the custody of the Department of Human Services and taken to a youth shelter, said Woodward police Lt. Chuck Wheeler.

The boy apparently walked out the front door of a nearby trailer home, crossed the home's front yard and wandered into the street, Wheeler said.

Information on the case has been forwarded to the district attorney's office, which will decide whether charges should be filed, Wheeler said.