Yorba Linda Man Held : Placentia Boy Injured by Hit-Run Driver

A 14-year-old Placentia boy was in critical condition Friday after he was struck from behind by a hit-and-run driver.

Ramiro Padilla was riding his bicycle on Placentia Avenue south of La Jolla Street about 8:54 p.m. Thursday when he was hit by a 1988 Lincoln Continental, Anaheim Police Sgt. Frank Van De Weerd said.

The car then slammed into a guardrail,and the driver fled on foot, leaving Padilla in the street with a major head injury, Van De Weerd said.

Evidence at the scene indicated that Dennis Lyle Christensen, 42, of Yorba Linda, was the driver of the car, Van De Weerd said.

Police arrested Christensen, a car salesman, when he called 2 hours after the accident and said his car had been stolen, Van De Weerd said.

According to the state Department of Motor Vehicles, Christensen was driving with a suspended license for drunk driving.

DMV records show that Christensen had citations for reckless driving in 1984 and for drunk driving involving a traffic collision in 1987. He also was cited for driving without a license in November, 1987, and for a speeding violation of driving over 65 m.p.h. in February, DMV records show.

Anaheim Police Sgt. Richard Zschoche, who is investigating the accident, said Friday that Christensen did not want to answer officers’ questions. Zschoche also said he had not yet looked into the driver’s record. Christensen was held in Anaheim Jail in lieu of $10,000 bail, Zschoche said.