Arizona youth charged with homicide after death of baby left in hot car for nearly 7 hours

PHOENIX — A juvenile has been arrested and charged with negligent homicide for the death of an infant left in a car in northern Arizona, authorities said.

The update came after disturbing new information was released about the baby who died this week in Yavapai County.

The 6-month-old child was strapped into a car seat for nearly seven hours before he was found dead on Tuesday night, according to the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office.

Few details were made available when authorities first reported the incident on Wednesday. The initial report incorrectly said the victim’s age was 8 months.

YCSO laid out the timeline for the tragedy in a Thursday announcement.

It started when a neighbor gave the infant and his mother a ride from their Cordes Lakes home to Prescott Valley on Tuesday and the baby fell asleep on the way back.

The mother asked the neighbor to drop the child off with his father, who was due home soon. But the neighbor allegedly forgot and left the baby in the back seat at around 2 p.m., YCSO said.

The car was exposed to the sun on a day the high temperature in Cordes Lakes was over 100 degrees.

The father called the mother at work around 8:45 p.m. and asked when the neighbor was bringing over the baby. The neighbor then rushed next door to get the father. They pulled the child out, called 911 and tried performing CPR, but it was too late.

YCSO said Thursday a criminal investigation is underway, and the case would be submitted to the county attorney.

It was the second hot car death of the year in Arizona and 17th nationwide, according to Kids and Car Safety.

A man whose 2-year-old daughter died after he left her in his car in Marana earlier this month was arrested on charges of second-degree murder and child abuse.

This is an updated version of a story originally published on July 30, 2024.

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