A MAN IN CALIFORNIA has been charged with attempted murder after he drove for 35 miles with his wife clinging to the roof of the couple’s minivan at speeds of up to 100 miles an hour.

Christopher Michael Carroll, 36, get onto the family car in the early hours of Saturday morning after he and his wife had an argument.

The San Joaquin County sheriff’s office said Carroll’s wife climbed up on the vehicle in an attempt to prevent him from driving away, but Carroll took off as she clung to the wipers.

One witness who followed Carroll said he had hit 100mph.

Carroll eventually slowed the car sufficiently for his wife to roll off. The person following Carroll picked her up and took her to hospital, where she was treated for hypothermia after being driven around in freezing temperatures.

Police arrested Carroll at his home a short time later. He is currently being held without bail on charges of attempted murder, kidnapping and domestic assault.

News10 reports that police are not sure how they managed to miss the minivan, after receiving concerned messages from the public about the vehicle.

The woman said she had tried to alert other drivers to the situation by moving her feet and shaking her hair. She didn’t think anyone could see her on the front of the car because her husband wasn’t using his lights, she said.

- Includes reporting from the AP