7 Children Left In Hot Car By Woman Shopping, Boy Dials 911

A Maryland woman accused of leaving seven children in a hot car while on a shopping trip was arrested Friday.

In a press release, the Charles County Sheriff’s Office said a child dialed 911 at around 1 p.m. EDT saying he and six other children, aged between two and four, were left unattended inside a car, which was not running and the windows were closed. Although the caller was unable to provide a location, the emergency dispatcher was able to use GPS and other methods to pinpoint that the call came from an area near St. Charles Towne Center.

After officers responded to the scene, they helped the children out of the vehicle. All seven of them were treated at the scene.

“The driver of the car, a 37-year-old woman, arrived at her vehicle about ten minutes later. Through investigation, officers were able to determine she had been inside the mall for at least twenty minutes shopping,” the press release said.

It was later revealed that the unidentified woman was the mother of two of the children who were rescued from the vehicle and was babysitting the rest of them. According to the Charles County State’s Attorney’s Office, the woman was charged with the confinement of children inside a motor vehicle. Additional charges could be brought against her pending the completion of the investigation.

The Department of Social Services was assisting the sheriff’s office with the case.

“As a reminder, it is against the law to leave a child under the age of eight unattended inside a motor vehicle if the caregiver is out of sight of the child unless a reliable person at least 13-years-old remains with the child. It is also dangerous to leave anyone, including pets, inside a motor vehicle especially as outside temperatures become warmer. The temperature inside a parked car can quickly rise to extremely high and even fatal levels in a short period of time,” the press release said.

Maryland family law Section 5-801 stated that “a person who is charged with the care of a child under the age of eight years may not allow the child to be locked or confined in a dwelling, building, enclosure, or motor vehicle while the person charged is absent and the dwelling, building, enclosure, or motor vehicle is out of the sight of the person charged unless the person charged provides a reliable person at least 13 years old to remain with the child to protect the child.”

If convicted, the woman may be subjected to a fine not exceeding $500 or imprisonment not exceeding 30 days, or both.