A mother is facing charges including child endangerment in the death of her 6-month-old daughter, who died after being left inside a hot car in New Jersey for more than four hours amid a heat wave, authorities say.
Officers responding to a 911 call about a child in a car in a parking lot on South Ridgedale Avenue off Route 10 in East Hanover July 17 found the baby girl unconscious. She was pronounced dead at a hospital.
Investigators say the girl's mother, Livia Patelli of Roseland, left the baby in the car for four and a half hours. It wasn't clear what she was allegedly doing during that time. Patelli was released ahead of an expected court appearance. Information on a possible attorney for her wasn't immediately available.
The baby's hot car death was the third of its ilk in the tri-state area on that day. Earlier, an 8-week-old infant died after being left in a hot car in Lakewood. The father was charged in that case.
In New York, that same evening, a toddler died after being pulled from a car outside a New York apartment complex. Temperatures rose into the mid-90s on that July 17 day, though feels-like temperatures were higher from humidity.
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