Arizona girl, 2, left in car by father on 109-degree day and is found dead

[MsMarple]

It's not clear if he forgot the toddler, or if he left her sleeping or whatever.

In the video the officer said the father told them that he arrived home, the child was sleeping and he left the car running and the a/c on.

So he didn’t directly say he decided to leave her in the car but circumstances strongly suggest he did, otherwise why leave an empty car running with a/c going?

But yeah, I doubt he planned to leave her there for three hours so I guess he forgot about her as he got busy with something in the house.

 

[clorenc]

I knew it. How does someone mistake 3 hours for 30-60 minutes?

Either he wasn’t paying attention (video games?) or he lied out of fear.

 

[LadyL]

It's not clear if he forgot the toddler, or if he left her sleeping or whatever.

maybe both
thought he'd let her finish her nap and then forgot about her

 

[KMouse]

Yes, he lost my sympathy when he decided to leave his sleeping daughter in the car. He lives in Arizona, there’s a heat wave with temperatures above 105 degrees for pity’s sake!

BTW, in Arizona there’s no law prohibiting leaving a child in a car, running or not. IMO that needs to change. I’m also in favor of immediately taking blood to rule out impairment from drug or alcohol use.

Just because a caregiver is remorseful and acknowledges their mistake it shouldn’t negate their reckless behavior when they intentionally left their child in danger.
MOO

How many more children will die this year alone because of negligent and selfish guardians. There should be laws in every state in the US and every province in Canada.
When we stop for gas and our vehicle is turned off I always have to open the passenger door if it is warm out because it gets stifling hot within minutes. This man likely sat inside his air conditioned house playing video games or scrolling his phone while this child slowly died. He needs to go to jail.

 

[MissMalowe]

Yikes. Was trying to give the dad the benefit of the doubt (time really does fly sometimes) but it's sounding like he fibbed about the length of time.
Did I miss anything about their other kids? Where were they?

 

[threesevenninefour]

Ugh, this made me so sad…I can’t even imagine what that poor mom was thinking or feeling

The toddler was rushed to Banner University Medical Center Tucson, where her mother Erika Scholtes, 35, worked as an anesthesiologist.

Girl, 2, dies in hot car after 'her father made terrible mistake'

Parker Scholtes, 2, died after she was left in a car outside her home in Tucson, Arizona, for at least half an hour by her father Chris Scholtes as the temperature climbed to 109F.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[ChatteringBirds]

This isn't a 'terrible mistake' this is an adult who CHOSE to leave his toddler in a hot car for what sounds like hours while he played video games. There's no 'mistake'.

He may have thought it was an air-conditioned car the entire time, but I have to agree he left her way too long. And to think he would have left her longer, if his wife had not arrived home to ask about her.

 

[KMouse]

He may have thought it was an air-conditioned car the entire time, but I have to agree he left her way too long. And to think he would have left her longer, if his wife had not arrived home to ask about her.

Imagine that conversation. Poor Mom.

 

[Ray_of_hope]

It's not clear if he forgot the toddler, or if he left her sleeping or whatever.

OK, I just read another article and dad left the car running per report to keep toddler cool. So he made a conscious decision to leave the baby. Mom is a working mom and is an MD anesthesiologist. I wonder if dad is a stay at home dad raising the kiddos. What a tragedy. They have two older children. There are so many reports of children and animals dying in hot cars recently that people must be aware. If only...

 

[BrownRice]

I think it was fair to think it could have been a mistake, before we knew more . . . Might seem safe to keep a sleeping toddler strapped in so she doesn’t run into the street while you’re unloading the other two kids and some groceries, thinking you’ll come right back out for her. You help another daughter rush to the potty, then, on autopilot, you start putting away the groceries while ruminating about some work issue, and you forget that the toddler is still in the car.

But now that we know the length of time and that he was possibly playing video games, I think it definitely changes from just a “mistake.”

And being deceitful about the time, trying to minimize the horrific details. The poor mom came home at 4:00 pm and must have asked where she was…..

 

[Arkay]

He may have thought it was an air-conditioned car the entire time, but I have to agree he left her way too long. And to think he would have left her longer, if his wife had not arrived home to ask about her.

OK, I just read another article and dad left the car running per report to keep toddler cool. So he made a conscious decision to leave the baby. Mom is a working mom and is an MD anesthesiologist. I wonder if dad is a stay at home dad raising the kiddos. What a tragedy. They have two older children. There are so many reports of children and animals dying in hot cars recently that people must be aware. If only...

IMO it’s undeniable that he left this little girl in the car intentionally, since he made a conscious choice to leave the car running with the AC on.

I don’t think, at this point, that he intended to cause her harm, but I cannot fathom what this man was thinking.

Even if it weren’t in Arizona during a deadly heat wave…even if…HOW can a parent leave a toddler alone in a car while the engine is running?

Anyone nefarious could have seen that car with the motor running and stolen the car, even with no knowledge that there was a small helpless child there.

What would have happened to her then?

Yet it WAS in Arizona, in the summer, during a 109° day.

This IMO is absolutely unforgivable. It’s not that he forgot that she was there—-it’s that he LEFT her there, for whatever reason. With the most tragic of results.

 

[BrownRice]

He may have thought it was an air-conditioned car the entire time, but I have to agree he left her way too long. And to think he would have left her longer, if his wife had not arrived home to ask about her.

I don’t know much about cars, but I would never assume a car could run parked for 3 hrs with the air on. Definitely sounds like he did it on purpose originally and then got caught up in something else. Curious how the search warrant included the Play Station video game system. With all the technology of a new car, cellphones, cameras (assuming) at their house and neighbors, won’t take too long to figure out.

Not sure how any parent could think leaving your kid in a car alone is a good idea. Even without the heat factor. She could have been kidnapped, could have gotten out of the car seat and been injured etc.

I’m usually very sympathetic to these situations, but this seems extremely neglectful. I don’t think I would ever want to speak to my husband again if he did this.

 

[MsMarple]

IMO it’s undeniable that he left this little girl in the car intentionally, since he made a conscious choice to leave the car running with the AC on.

I don’t think, at this point, that he intended to cause her harm, but I cannot fathom what this man was thinking.

Even if it weren’t in Arizona during a deadly heat wave…even if…HOW can a parent leave a toddler alone in a car while the engine is running?

Anyone nefarious could have seen that car with the motor running and stolen the car, even with no knowledge that there was a small helpless child there.

What would have happened to her then?

Yet it WAS in Arizona, in the summer, during a 109° day.

This IMO is absolutely unforgivable. It’s not that he forgot that she was there—-it’s that he LEFT her there, for whatever reason. With the most tragic of results.

Yes, and could this father guarantee the little girl wouldn’t wake up while he was in the house, oblivious to what was happening in the car? Imagine her waking up and crying for her daddy to come get her? How could any parent choose to take that chance, and for what? A few minutes to do do… what? I’m sick over this.

Has he done this before?

 

[shesfixingherhair]

Even if it weren’t in Arizona during a deadly heat wave…even if…HOW can a parent leave a toddler alone in a car while the engine is running?

Anyone nefarious could have seen that car with the motor running and stolen the car, even with no knowledge that there was a small helpless child there.

What would have happened to her then?

SBM

This occurred to me when reading the posts about cars that automatically turn off after being in park for 30 minutes. My car does not have such a feature, and I have spent many a lunch break sitting in it and reading where coworkers can’t spot me. At first I thought, “oh, how terrible, he must have thought it would be cool from the AC,” but then I realized…even if it had been, we’re talking about a TODDLER!!

 

[iamshadow21]

SBM

This occurred to me when reading the posts about cars that automatically turn off after being in park for 30 minutes. My car does not have such a feature, and I have spent many a lunch break sitting in it and reading where coworkers can’t spot me. At first I thought, “oh, how terrible, he must have thought it would be cool from the AC,” but then I realized…even if it had been, we’re talking about a TODDLER!!

Yeah, a car is not a babysitter.

A two year old should never be out of ear and eye shot of a carer for that long, let alone left in a car in a heatwave.

MOO

 

[Arkay]

How could any parent choose to take that chance, and for what? A few minutes to do do… what? I’m sick over this.

I understand the impulse to leave the child for a moment rather than go through the hassle BUT it just simply CANNOT be done!

My life experience informs my opinion.

My husband left when I was 25 and we had a 15-month old. That was over 40 years ago now but I very much recall what it was like being a single parent.

My married friends, let’s say they needed something from a store, they would double park and one would run to the store while the other stayed with the child.

For me, I had to find a parking spot (this is NYC and there’s essentially no place to park), open the trunk to get the stroller, take my daughter out of her car seat, strap her into the stroller, shop for milk or whatever, walk back to wherever I’d found parking, take her out of the stroller, strap her back in the car seat, fold the stroller and put it back in the trunk.

All for something that takes two minutes if there are two parents. So I definitely understand the impulse but could not and would not have ever done it.

So I can’t forgive this.

IMO and IME.

 

[Panniniclaus]

Yeah, a car is not a babysitter.

A two year old should never be out of ear and eye shot of a carer for that long, let alone left in a car in a heatwave.

MOO

That's what he used his car for... perhaps not for the first time. Would not be surprised if he was a video game addict and once he got into the game, his child was the furthest thing from his mind. Inexcusable and there is no way a marriage survives that. It will probably be years before he can see his other children without supervision.

 

[Seni]

Yeah, a car is not a babysitter.

A two year old should never be out of ear and eye shot of a carer for that long, let alone left in a car in a heatwave.

MOO

Absolutely agree

 

[Allabouttrial]

DBM

 

[airportwoman]

Either he wasn’t paying attention (video games?) or he lied out of fear.

I also wonder if he's done this before.

Does anyone know about his occupation or educational credentials? I know the mother is a physician.