Incident and Immediate Response
An 8-year-old girl has tragically died after being left in a hot car by her mother in Charlotte, North Carolina. The incident occurred on Wednesday evening, with the child found in critical condition and later pronounced dead at the hospital from a heat-related medical emergency. The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department has charged the mother with involuntary manslaughter and child abuse by willful act causing serious injury.
Mother’s Account and Arrest
According to an arrest affidavit, the 36-year-old mother, who is currently held in the Mecklenburg County Jail on a $250,000 bond, left her daughter in the car while she went to work. She reported that she left the air conditioning running in the vehicle, but believed her daughter may have turned it off because she was cold. The mother last communicated with her daughter via text about an hour and a half before returning to the car, where she discovered her unresponsive on the backseat floorboard.
Rescue Attempts and Medical Response
Upon finding her daughter, the mother used a hammer to break the back window and reach her child. She then drove towards the hospital but stopped at a nearby business seeking help, where a bystander called 911. Emergency responders transported the girl to Novant Health Presbyterian Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead early Thursday morning.
Legal Proceedings
Court records indicate that the mother acknowledged her mistake, admitting she should not have left her child in the car, especially given the outside temperature of 94 degrees Fahrenheit (34.4 degrees Celsius). She has been appointed a public defender and is scheduled for her next court hearing on July 17.
