Houston 2-month-old left in hot car died, no charges filed against mother
HOUSTON - The investigation continues after a 2-month-old boy was found dead after being left in a hot car on Tuesday. Houston police are now trying to determine if his mother will face any charges.
"Under no circumstances, you should leave a child in the car. Not even for a moment. Don’t think the AC’s going to work out fine, or if you roll down the window, that’s going to be fine. It gets very hot, especially for an infant or a child, the body temperature goes up very quickly," said HPD Asst. Chief Yasar Bashir.
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Houston Police reiterated an important message reminding parents to not leave their children in the car, especially alone in this heat.
FOX 26 Meteorologists say temperatures have been clocking in at more than 100 degrees almost every day.
Around 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, investigators say a 2-month-old baby boy was found unresponsive by his own mother. Police say she had left him in the car alone while visiting the Harris Center for Mental Health and IDD with another 4-year-old child.
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The infant’s cause of death is still pending a report from the Medical examiner’s office. So far, no charges have been filed, but police say both parents are cooperating.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s website, in just 10 minutes, a car can heat up by 20 degrees and become deadly. Those especially vulnerable are the elderly and children, as experts say a child's body temperature can rise three to five times faster than an adult's.
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"It's a little bit harder to tell on babies when they’re developing heat stroke. They need an extra degree of caution. They can’t talk, they can’t move, they can’t get themselves out of the hot environment," said Emergency Physician Dr. Jeff Patterson with LifeSavers ER.
Harris County Medical Examiner records show that nine heat-related deaths have occurred in Houston since June 14th. The majority of those victims have been over 65-years-old.