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

[airportwoman]

Her father claimed that he left her in the car in the driveway, with the engine and a/c on, and when he came back about half an hour later, it had somehow turned itself off, and the car had overheated and she had died.

I have a really bad feeling about this one, and that this isn't what really happened. I realize we have to let authorities do their jobs.

2-year-old Arizona girl dies after dad leaves her in car during triple-digit heat: Police

A 2-year-old girl has died after her father left her in a hot car as triple-digit temperatures hit Arizona.

abcnews.go.com

Thread #1

 

[Knitty]

Please continue here.

 

[LifeIsAMystery]

2 bodycam videos have been released. Day of death and day of arrest (3 days later).

I was surprised at how much back and forth focused on CS and his emotional displays there was the day of the death when EMTs were still with Parker at the house.

I had thought that ES and Parker left right away by ambulance and he was with LE at house, but she was there too, rubbing his back, etc. So now I'm a bit more curious about the timing of the texts btw ES and CS and where they were when they were exchanged. When was the "how many times have I told you" in the timeline? Was it only him who did it or did they both do it (as he claimed day of death)) and it was a bit CYA? CS was ALL in CYA mode with LE and told a lot of lies that were easily disproved. That was given as a basis by AZ in asking for him to be held. Why would she text "we've lost her" when they were all at the house? I also wondered about the little girls and their emotional state and if they were left to comfort one another when all this was happening in video day of. Neither they nor Parker seemed to be the focus, day of death, and ES wanting to get the kids to watch CS be arrested days later, stopped by LE also seemed really non-protective. Was it to silence them to see the consequences of them "telling?"

I know ES tried CPR before EMTs arrived but once they were on scene, neither parent seemed focused on Parker, it was all about comforting CS and I was a bit surprised that they did not even grasp the optics of that. JMOOO. I guess it was so obvious she was gone that there was no rush to leave but seems odd to delay. ES had brought Parker inside to do CPR so where was she when texting CS, also inside? It's not like she was outside in the driveway with Parker.

Bond hearing here

It really seems this is headed toward minimal consequences for him. The kids suffered the loss of 2 sisters and ongoing dysfunction. I hope they will be ok if this goes how it seems it will.

 

[SMK777]

Reposting this bodycam footage of the arrest just released on Law and Crime Network channel:

 

[LoveyG]

So, viewing the videos, I notice he doesn't crumble to the ground in despair until he is getting arrested. Because that, after all, is the real tragedy here.

 

[Normancita]

I wonder if more of the body-cam arrest videos will be made public. It seems like the parts that have been released are edited or spliced.

 

[MsMarple]

Reposting the interview with the oldest daughter of CS who lived with him and ES for 4 years until CPS removed her from the home. She requested to remain anonymous so please don’t post anything that might reveal her information. She’s only 16.

She said Scholtes would leave her alone inside of the car, sometimes for hours, since she was as young as seven.

"It makes plenty of sense, actually I'm surprised it didn't happen sooner," she said. "{Once} I had to go sit out in the car for four to five hours and continuously had to restart the car and had only eaten once that day."

She has Type 1 diabetes so that proved dangerous for her.
…
She said eventually, against her wishes, Scholtes was able to get custody of her and she spent four years living with him and his wife Erika.

She described that period as a nightmare.
…
It got so bad in 2021 she said she tried to kill herself because she didn't want to live with her father.

Child Protective Services got involved and Scholtes lost custody of her.

N4T Investigators: Half-sister of 2 year old killed in hot car speaks out in exclusive interview

For the first time one of Christopher Scholtes' daughters is speaking publicly after the tragic death of his two year old daughter Parker earlier this month.

www.kvoa.com

 

[Herat]

Reposting the interview with the oldest daughter of CS who lived with him and ES for 4 years until CPS removed her from the home. She requested to remain anonymous so please don’t post anything that might reveal her information. She’s only 16.

She said Scholtes would leave her alone inside of the car, sometimes for hours, since she was as young as seven.

"It makes plenty of sense, actually I'm surprised it didn't happen sooner," she said. "{Once} I had to go sit out in the car for four to five hours and continuously had to restart the car and had only eaten once that day."

She has Type 1 diabetes so that proved dangerous for her.
…
She said eventually, against her wishes, Scholtes was able to get custody of her and she spent four years living with him and his wife Erika.

She described that period as a nightmare.
…
It got so bad in 2021 she said she tried to kill herself because she didn't want to live with her father.

Child Protective Services got involved and Scholtes lost custody of her.

N4T Investigators: Half-sister of 2 year old killed in hot car speaks out in exclusive interview

For the first time one of Christopher Scholtes' daughters is speaking publicly after the tragic death of his two year old daughter Parker earlier this month.

www.kvoa.com

Surely this has to be introduced into the information in the prosecution of the current crime.

I fear there is a great risk that CS will end up in a position of at least part of the time having sole responsibility for childcare of the surviving two children.

 

[stmarysmead]

Something is very off here. This is a parent who lost custody of another child, in part because of the same dangerous behavior. This is a parent who stole two beers from a convenience store while in the presence of and driving his children.

This is a man who lied to police from the start.

Yet the judge seems to buy into the ‘pillar of the community’ storyline.

Why?

 

[DatelineFan]

Something is very off here. This is a parent who lost custody of another child, in part because of the same dangerous behavior. This is a parent who stole two beers from a convenience store while in the presence of and driving his children.

This is a man who lied to police from the start.

Yet the judge seems to buy into the ‘pillar of the community’ storyline.

Why?

In my opinion, money and status. If this had been a low income family of color dad would have been in handcuffs and in jail from the start

 

[Normancita]

In my opinion, money and status. If this had been a low income family of color dad would have been in handcuffs and in jail from the start

1000000%

 

[scapa]

In my opinion, money and status. If this had been a low income family of color dad would have been in handcuffs and in jail from the start

Sadly true. Uncharted waters for me but I don't often follow such cases.

I'd expect some trickiness professionally also, though I've not practiced in the US. The surgical teams I work with tend to be friendly but not over-inquisitive as a rule, but having a partner charged with 1st-degree murder of his child would IMO be a large, loud elephant in the operating theatre.

 

[Herat]

Sadly true. Uncharted waters for me but I don't often follow such cases.

I'd expect some trickiness professionally also, though I've not practiced in the US. The surgical teams I work with tend to be friendly but not over-inquisitive as a rule, but having a partner charged with 1st-degree murder of his child would IMO be a large, loud elephant in the operating theatre.

Anesthesiologists can easily be switched out interchangeably, with a few exceptions like cardiovascular, neurosurgeries, or some pediatric surgeries.

She would not be irreplaceable, if her employer or group was getting negative feedback about the situation, or patients were asking for other anesthesiologists. Some surgeons just might not want her name appearing in their patient's chart.

 

[stmarysmead]

I wonder how much ‘pull’ the hospital, as a major employer, has in that community?

 

[SMK777]

Something is very off here. This is a parent who lost custody of another child, in part because of the same dangerous behavior. This is a parent who stole two beers from a convenience store while in the presence of and driving his children.

This is a man who lied to police from the start.

Yet the judge seems to buy into the ‘pillar of the community’ storyline.

Why?

The only thing that I can think of, is because his wife is a doctor in the community? Certainly not fair, but it stands out to me.

 

[Herat]

There are other non-hospital jobs for anesthesiologists, like working in ophthalmology clinics that do cataract surgeries. These tend to be cushy jobs that senior anesthesiologist who don't want to take call get.

Anesthesiology call can be a beetch, and it is not likely she would be employable at the University level if she did not take call. Usually the youngest anesthesiologist have to take the most call and it gets less as you progress in seniority.

 

[Charlot123]

Something is very off here. This is a parent who lost custody of another child, in part because of the same dangerous behavior. This is a parent who stole two beers from a convenience store while in the presence of and driving his children.

This is a man who lied to police from the start.

Yet the judge seems to buy into the ‘pillar of the community’ storyline.

Why?

Definitely not a good advertisement for the community.

In my opinion, money and status. If this had been a low income family of color dad would have been in handcuffs and in jail from the start

I was thinking about it watching the handcuffed part. The policemen were apologetic, and the policewoman said, "it is up to a judge". I felt sorry for the police - they witnessed a horrible situation, too, and now they have to apologize to the wife for doing their job. The father was having a hysterical meltdown, the mother was indignant at the dad's arrest. Not a good scene. But in any low income community it would have looked very differently.

 

[LoveyG]

Definitely not a good advertisement for the community.



I was thinking about it watching the handcuffed part. The policemen were apologetic, and the policewoman said, "it is up to a judge". I felt sorry for the police - they witnessed a horrible situation, too, and now they have to apologize to the wife for doing their job. The father was having a hysterical meltdown, the mother was indignant at the dad's arrest. Not a good scene. But in any low income community it would have looked very differently.

I doubt the wife in the low income family would have been allowed to stroke and fawn over the arrestee. She'd be going down for obstruction of justice or interference.

 

[SMK777]

In my opinion, money and status. If this had been a low income family of color dad would have been in handcuffs and in jail from the start

I have to agree with you. I refrained from saying it earlier, but I was thinking if they lived in a mobile home or apartment and she was a convenience store clerk, for example, would the judge have listened to her? Same thing with the Jon Benet Ramsey case, for example: Wealthy parents in a big house were not separately questioned and were given too much leeway by detectives in the first hours. It’s maddening, because all should be equal before the law.

 

[MissMalowe]

The fact that they are a conventionally attractive pair vs. a couple of potatoes also helps, I imagine.