A 3-year-old in the care of a family friend died Sunday after being left in a hot car while the friend went to choir practice at a Phoenix church.
Hayden Nelson was left inside the car for about three hours Saturday while his mother's friend, Courtney Arnold, went to join his mother at choir practice at Abundant Life Church in Phoenix, police told The Arizona Republic. The temperature outside that day reached 96 degrees.
It wasn't until the end of practice when adults found him in the car not breathing. Hayden was rushed to the hospital but died Sunday.
Phoenix police and prosecutors are now seeing if the 27-year-old friend is to face charges for the death, which is the 28th time this year a child has died from heatstroke after being left in a hot car, according to The Arizona Republic.
The night before the incident, Hayden's mother, Tiffani Nelson, spent the night at Arnold's house with her son and 8-year-old daughter. Nelson left the next morning because she had to arrive early at choir practice, police said.
Arnold was supposed to join Nelson at the practice with the kids later on. She arrived at the church at 11 a.m. Saturday and brought her own daughter and Nelson's 8-year-old inside, but left Hayden in the car.
"Indications are the suspect was a bit late and she and the other children exited the car," Officer James Holmes said according to KTVK. "The suspect went immediately into the church for practice."
Nelson didn't realize her son was missing until practice ended at around 2 p.m. Church goers helped search for Hayden and eventually found him outside. Police said Arnold was the one who located the unresponsive toddler.
"You cannot imagine what this young lady is going through right now, what this family is going through," Holmes said.
Maricopa County prosecutors are looking into the case to see if charges are warranted. As of Monday no one has been arrested.
Temperatures inside vehicles can climb over 100 degrees even if the weather outside is below 70. There have been previous arrests of caregivers in relation to child hot car deaths, most notably a Georgia father who was indicted for murder after leaving his 22-month-old son in his SUV for seven hours.
