I don't know what the charge would be, though. Julia "says" Sky was in the car and she left him there; that doesn't make it so. I don't believe Sky was in the car that morning and I don't think LE believes it either. If Sky was not left in the car LE really can't charge Julia with leaving him in the car if she didn't really leave him in the car.
If she didn't leave him in the car they could charge her with lying to LE (ala Casey Anthony), but LE would have be able to prove he wasn't in the car.
Obviously, JB committed a crime either way, but which one?
Both.
She claims he was in the car, so charge her with child neglect or whatever charge applies there.
She claimed the car was out of gas, but it wasn't and was running perfectly. So, charge her with lying to cops.
I have a vehicle which sometimes starts and sometimes doesn't.
I don't leave it there thinking it's out of gas. Because there is a gas gauge and I know when I put gas in.
I keep attempting to start it until it starts, or I jump it. Even the first time it did it, in a canyon at night.
I don't believe the car quit working, but even if it did there is no reasonable explanation to leave your child on the side of the road.
The only two things that explain that are:
Lying to police
Neglecting your child
Charge her with both, throw her in a dirty, nasty jail
on suicide watch where she can't control anything... and watch how quickly she cracks.
We are all different but I think if you take away her control... put her in a dirty jail... then promise her a psych ward in exchange for Sky?
You might get somewhere.
(Just my opinion as someone with OCD.)