A Florida woman has allegedly been charged after leaving her 5-year-old child in a hot car, and then complained to police that it was too hot when she was put in the back of the police cruiser during her arrest.
According to reports, the authorities responded to a report of a child left in a vehicle at a South Daytona Dollar General.
An official police report says the officers found a 5-year-old boy sitting alone in a locked Hyundai, parked in direct sunlight without any shade. The front driver’s side window was down and both passenger side windows were rolled up. The back driver’s side window was slightly open.
Police who responded said the boy was visibly upset and sweaty.
Colleen Walker, 30-year-old, told police his son wanted to stay in the car while she went out to shop.
“He wasn’t in the car for two hours, it was like, 12 minutes,” Walker told police.
“Don’t get all huffy and puffy because I’m not going to feel bad for you. I don’t care,” a firefighter told her.
The witness who called 911 said the child was in the car for at least 20 minutes and was reportedly seen screaming and crying. A store manager told police the mother had been in the store for nearly 30 minutes.
“She was complaining that the backseat of our patrol car was too hot on her way to the jail, and asked the officer to turn the AC up,” Lt. Dan Dietrich said.
The South Daytona Fire Department said the temperature in the car measured 107 degrees. The child was checked out by emergency medical services and determined to be okay.
Walker is facing child neglect charges and was held on a $5,000 bond.
Source: Inside Edition
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