An Alabama soldier is facing a murder charge after authorities say he forced his girlfriend’s 5-year-old son to get out of his car for being too “unruly,” leaving the boy to be struck by a passing motorist after he wandered onto a highway. “What is your thought process when you tell a 5-year-old to get out of the car on a rainy night because they were being loud in the car?” Russell County Sheriff Heath Taylor said of the charges against Army Sgt. Bryan Starr, 35. Starr, who is reportedly stationed at Fort Benning in Georgia, allegedly pulled over his Dodge Charger on Sunday night and forced the boy to get out for supposedly acting up, leaving him on his own at night in the rain. The boy then “ran out into the road” and was hit by another driver, authorities said. He died after being transported to a local hospital.

Authorities say the passing driver will not face charges, as they did not have “any chance” of avoiding the boy. Starr turned himself in on Monday and is currently in custody for what Taylor called a “horrific” case. “He’s 5 years old, and you’re telling him to get out of a vehicle in the rain at night, when he has no idea where he is, or how to get home,” Taylor said.