Toddler dies in hot car; parents facing charges

HOLMES COUNTY, Fla. — A Florida toddler died after being left in a vehicle for 15 hours, and the child’s parents are accused of murder and other charges, authorities said.

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Christopher McLean, 32, and Kathreen Adams, 23, were arrested and also charged with child neglect, possession of methamphetamine and possession of drug paraphernalia, WJHG-TV reported.

According to the Holmes County Sheriff’s Office, the 2-year-old was left in a vehicle from midnight to approximately 3 p.m. CDT on Tuesday in the community of Prosperity, WMBB-TV reported.

Deputies arriving at the scene observed Adams holding the child in her arms, according to the television station. She allegedly told deputies that she found the child unresponsive inside their home.

“Investigators on the scene had EMC take a body temperature of the baby, which the body temperature of the child was 107 degrees,” Holmes County Sheriff John Tate said at a news conference on Wednesday. “So we knew something was not adding up.”

Deputies attempted life-saving measures but the child was pronounced dead at the scene, according to WMBB.

McLean, who is the child’s father, was reportedly uncooperative during questioning, WJHG reported. Investigators said Adams eventually admitted she picked her daughter up from a babysitter around midnight and decided to leave her in the vehicle.

“So they decided to leave the child in the car and went inside and ultimately fell asleep and did not wake up or did not realize the child was in the car until around three, 3:41 that afternoon and once they realized that the child was still in the car, they went out and found it unresponsive,” Tate told reporters.

According to Kids and Car Safety, it was the fourth hot car death nationwide this year and the second in Florida.

Officials said a 4-year-old child was also in the vehicle but managed to exit, WJHG reported. The older child is currently in the custody of the Department of Children and Families.

“I honestly believe that methamphetamine is the culprit behind this death,” Tate told reporters. “When you use drugs, you lose sense of reality and this kind of stuff happens. If they weren’t on drugs, we probably wouldn’t be here today. We are ultimately here today to get justice for that two-year-old,” said Tate.