CA - 2-month old baby found dead in hot car - June 20, 2024

[MsMarple]

The couple live in a three-bedroom house that has so many animals it is 'basically a zoo' with three cats, two dogs, chickens, fish, and a flock of parakeets.

They include a Samoyed named Hero that their son often sleeps on, a west highland white terrier, cats named Shego, Selina, and Puffy, and various foster animals.

Romer is an avid gardener and grows fruit, vegetables, bonsai trees, and flowers in the backyard and Jayson looks after the animals and collects eggs from the chickens.

'Our house is very popular with our neighbors and their children. They say it's like a petting zoo... Everybody is so excited to meet our future child,' they wrote.

PICTURED: Baby girl who died after being left in hot car 'for hours'

Diana Sofia Aleman Roman was found unresponsive in the SUV outside her home in Santee, San Diego, two months after her parents Romer and Jayson De Los Santos adopted her.

www.dailymail.co.uk

That’s an awful lot of animals! I have a serious question: did the parents attend to the older sibling and feed and water the animals that afternoon and evening or did they forget? I ask for a couple reasons, one being if they didn’t forget then why was the baby’s presence forgotten? Why did the “brain-autopilot brain-memory system“ that experts espouse apply only to the infant? Was there a day care issue?

IF we learn that a third party and not the stay at home dad was responsible for caring for the baby that day then it might explain why the parents weren’t aware of the baby’s location for 9+ hours. In which case we may see charges there. The parents appear to be loving and responsible, so what the heck happened??

 

[SMK777]

It's not wordy just to say the word father.

Not sure why the terms are in quotes on this thread. They are a family, not a "family."

jmo

Since there are 2 fathers, it may have been.
I was quoting the article by saying “member of the family”, etc. Not quoting the idea of their being family.

 

[SMK777]

They would have saved us several pages of conjecture about the “family member” if they’d just been clear!

Exactly.

 

[SMK777]

The parents appear to be loving and responsible, so what the heck happened??

Yes, this is exactly the crux of the mystery: That they do indeed appear to be loving, caring, responsible parents.

 

[abyquinn]

They would have saved us several pages of conjecture about the “family member” if they’d just been clear!

It’s also possible they aren’t sure who placed the call, or they had a name without knowing the relationship to the baby. The first article didn’t have the name of the victim.

 

[SMK777]

It’s also possible they aren’t sure who placed the call, or they had a name without knowing the relationship to the baby. The first article didn’t have the name of the victim.

That’s possible, yes.

 

[Knox]

The couple live in a three-bedroom house that has so many animals it is 'basically a zoo' with three cats, two dogs, chickens, fish, and a flock of parakeets.

They include a Samoyed named Hero that their son often sleeps on, a west highland white terrier, cats named Shego, Selina, and Puffy, and various foster animals.

Romer is an avid gardener and grows fruit, vegetables, bonsai trees, and flowers in the backyard and Jayson looks after the animals and collects eggs from the chickens.

'Our house is very popular with our neighbors and their children. They say it's like a petting zoo... Everybody is so excited to meet our future child,' they wrote.

PICTURED: Baby girl who died after being left in hot car 'for hours'

Diana Sofia Aleman Roman was found unresponsive in the SUV outside her home in Santee, San Diego, two months after her parents Romer and Jayson De Los Santos adopted her.

www.dailymail.co.uk

That’s an awful lot of animals! I have a serious question: did the parents attend to the older sibling and feed and water the animals that afternoon and evening or did they forget? I ask for a couple reasons, one being if they didn’t forget then why was the baby’s presence forgotten? Why did the “brain-autopilot brain-memory system“ that experts espouse apply only to the infant? Was there a day care issue?

IF we learn that a third party and not the stay at home dad was responsible for caring for the baby that day then it might explain why the parents weren’t aware of the baby’s location for 9+ hours. In which case we may see charges there. The parents appear to be loving and responsible, so what the heck happened??

I've raised three kids and parented two others. Can't fathom forgetting my child in a car for hours, but understand it happens - frequently across the US.

New to this story, but from everything that's out there right now. It seems these two were good people, genuinely trying to be good parents. Which is more than I can say for the other parents we see in this forum.

I would imagine their own guilt and living with the death of Diana, is worse than anything the legal system could ever do to them. They need to continue raising their remaining child, so I hope they help each other get through this devastating tragedy.

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[katydid23]

Yeah I'm super confused by this bc your theory of babysitting family member makes sense since it was a family member who discovered the baby in the car and called 911.

Yet when I think of loading up a toddler and an infant into the family car to run errands or something I think... why? Why do that if you don't have to? Why try to wrangle two kids in new territory rather than just staying at the family home if youre just babysitting for a short period of time?

Yes, if there is ever a time to use grub hub or postmates, it's when you are home with a 2 yr old and their 4 month old sister.

 

[SMK777]

I've raised three kids and parented two others. Can't fathom forgetting my child in a car for hours, but understand it happens - frequently across the US.

New to this story, but from everything that's out there right now. It seems these two were good people, genuinely trying to be good parents. Which is more than I can say for the other parents we see in this forum.

I would imagine their own guilt and living with the death of Diana, is worse than anything the legal system could ever do to them. They need to continue raising their remaining child, so I hope they help each other get through this devastating tragedy.

Yes, I feel horrible for them because it’s clear that they had such good intentions. I’m almost hoping it was another party who was responsible so it at least lightens the burden of guilt for these dads.

 

[MsMarple]

Yes, I feel horrible for them because it’s clear that they had such good intentions. I’m almost hoping it was another party who was responsible so it at least lightens the burden of guilt for these dads.

But what if it was them who left her in the car for 9+ hours? I can’t come up with a reasonable explanation. It was past work hours, it was the time of day parents feed their kids, bathe them and get them into bed.

I wonder what made them realize the baby was still in the car?

I soooo hope there’s something that makes this death make sense. During the Cooper Harris case many of us researched what happened to a child locked in a hot car for hours and it was heartbreaking. The initial stages are quite painful. Thankfully towards the end the inability to breathe causes the brain to start shutting down.

These parents went through hell to win the right to marry and clearly passed inspections well enough to be able to adopt not one but two children. There’s no reason why they would intentionally harm an innocent baby. So why did this happen?

 

[SMK777]

But what if it was them who left her in the car for 9+ hours? I can’t come up with a reasonable explanation. It was past work hours, it was the time of day parents feed their kids, bathe them and get them into bed.

I wonder what made them realize the baby was still in the car?

I soooo hope there’s something that makes this death make sense. During the Cooper Harris case many of us researched what happened to a child locked in a hot car for hours and it was heartbreaking. The initial stages are quite painful. Thankfully towards the end the inability to breathe causes the brain to start shutting down.

These parents went through hell to win the right to marry and clearly passed inspections well enough to be able to adopt not one but two children. There’s no reason why they would intentionally harm an innocent baby. So why did this happen?

You’re right, it may have been them. And it’s very hard to fathom what would cause them to forget a 2 month old from 3:30 pm to 12:20 am.

They had just recently adopted her and their Facebook account is filled with pictures of her room, the mural they painted, beautiful stuffed animals. They were proud and joyful. What happened?

That’s why I keep wondering if she was being watched by a family member/sitter who was not as trustworthy as they thought…

 

[Arkay]

You can also take off a shoe and put it in the backseat. It just has to be something you would grab and take inside with you regardless of where you are going.

I think taking off one of your shoes and putting it in back near the baby is the best bet. How could you possibly walk into work or anywhere wearing only one shoe without noticing it?

I’ve always thought that the shoe off is the superior idea. If you throw your left shoe, presuming you drive with your right foot, into the back of the car IMMEDIATELY then it’s impossible not to search for it when you exit the car. You would instantly notice that you’re missing a shoe.

I have a daughter and three grandchildren and we’ve never had any car mishaps. I cannot fathom it happening, as I’m the nervous type who always stole glances at them in the rear view mirror, but I know it does happen to conscientious parents, as well.

IMO this info about how busy and crowded their home was, petting zoo et.al., makes for an extremely complicated situation for a family getting itself wrapped up for the night. Just too much to take care of simultaneously.

JMO of course. I have to withhold judgment until we know more. I don’t want to think about how unbearable this is for everyone.

 

[GoBuckeyes]

I’ve always thought that the shoe off is the superior idea. If you throw your left shoe, presuming you drive with your right foot, into the back of the car IMMEDIATELY then it’s impossible not to search for it when you exit the car. You would instantly notice that you’re missing a shoe.

I have a daughter and three grandchildren and we’ve never had any car mishaps. I cannot fathom it happening, as I’m the nervous type who always stole glances at them in the rear view mirror, but I know it does happen to conscientious parents, as well.

IMO this info about how busy and crowded their home was, petting zoo et.al., makes for an extremely complicated situation for a family getting itself wrapped up for the night. Just too much to take care of simultaneously.

JMO of course. I have to withhold judgment until we know more. I don’t want to think about how unbearable this is for everyone.

I agree about the left shoe idea. Great solution to this problem.

 

[AliceInPain]

I can't see how you would not check on your 2-month old at least every three or four hours unless they are sleeping safely in their cot. Even when mine were with their childminder I'd call her every now and then to make sure they were ok (I realise not everyone is as nervous as I was). You remember to check their breathing, that they're comfortable etc.
They're the new little miracle in your life, how do you forget?

 

[mickey2942]

I’ve always thought that the shoe off is the superior idea. If you throw your left shoe, presuming you drive with your right foot, into the back of the car IMMEDIATELY then it’s impossible not to search for it when you exit the car. You would instantly notice that you’re missing a shoe.

I have a daughter and three grandchildren and we’ve never had any car mishaps. I cannot fathom it happening, as I’m the nervous type who always stole glances at them in the rear view mirror, but I know it does happen to conscientious parents, as well.

IMO this info about how busy and crowded their home was, petting zoo et.al., makes for an extremely complicated situation for a family getting itself wrapped up for the night. Just too much to take care of simultaneously.

JMO of course. I have to withhold judgment until we know more. I don’t want to think about how unbearable this is for everyone.

They had two dogs, 3 cats, some fish and birds. That is hardly a "petting zoo". Cats take care of themselves, fish, throw them some food, clean their tank every once in awhile, birds, don't need a lot of care. The dogs are the most care, walk, feed..

I am just trying to figure out how both parents didn't realize that the baby was missing for 9 hours. At two months, mine were not just sleeping all of the time, I was busy constantly with the baby at that age. I used a baby sling, for months. I felt "naked" without it.

This was not even a very large house, 3 bedrooms? And no one missed the baby for 9 HOURS?! Why did they finally find her at 12:20 am? Seems odd.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

Speculation: There was probably a large miscommunication or change in routine.

What's unusual, though, is that *two* parents didn't check on a baby for 9 hours, including all evening, which makes me think maybe one of them wasn't even home for a significant portion of those hours.

But even so, you have to wonder why no one was feeding her dinner or doing a bedtime routine. It is actually very perplexing, but maybe there are major details missing.

 

[SMK777]

Speculation: There was probably a large miscommunication or change in routine.

What's unusual, though, is that *two* parents didn't check on a baby for 9 hours, including all evening, which makes me think maybe one of them wasn't even home for a significant portion of those hours.

But even so, you have to wonder why no one was feeding her dinner or doing a bedtime routine. It is actually very perplexing, but maybe there are major details missing.

That’s why I’ve always thought that maybe the major detail missing is that the dads went out and mistakenly trusted a family member to babysit. It would sure explain a lot.

 

[SMK777]

I’m surprised that there have been no updates on this case. If the baby died on June 13, you would think by now that charges would be filed against a responsible party.

Or, conversely, if the incident was ruled accidental, that this also would be announced.