A Chandler, Arizona mom was arrested on August 13 after a stranger found one of her children sitting in a hot car while she was in Target.
According to AZ Central, mom of four Holli Platt had taken all of her children to Target with her that day. However, Platt reportedly didn’t realize she had left her youngest child in the car until after a stranger called 911.
As AZ Central reports, the Good Samaritan found the child inside Platt’s vehicle around 4:22 p.m. The child was sweating and crying from being inside the hot car, which was not running.
After calling 911, the dispatcher instructed the caller to break the window of Platt’s vehicle and pull the baby out. The Samaritan handed the baby over to first responders who arrived just moments later.
Detective Seth Tyler said of the child’s rescued to 12 News:
“She called 911 right away. She got someone else’s attention. The third individual showed up. While they were on the phone with the fire department, dispatchers gave them permission to break the window and get the child out.”
Platt reportedly ran out of the Target without her three other children when the police asked to have her name announced over the store’s intercom. The mom told police that she forgot her youngest child in the car because she was distracted by her three older children, who were very excited to buy things.
According to Chandler Police, after reviewing the store’s security footage, authorities say the baby was inside the vehicle for 18 minutes before they were found by the Good Samaritan. As AZ Central reports, it was 112-degrees in Arizona that day, and police believe the temperature in the car rose 25-degrees in less than 20 minutes.
After being checked out by the responding firefighters, the baby had high blood pressure but was otherwise in good health.
Now, all four of their children are being cared for by their father. It’s unclear if Platt and the father currently live in the same home.
Platt was arrested and booked in a Maricopa County jail. She faces one count of child abuse. Her attorney said of the mom during her first court appearance on August 14:
“My client’s a dedicated stay-at-home mother. For the last 13 years, all she’s done is raise her children. She obsesses over their safety, their cleanliness, they’re well-maintained she’s just a wonderful mother to her children.”
According to Kids and Cars, in just 2019 alone, 32 children have died after being left inside a hot car. As the website states, “even the best of parents or caregivers can unknowingly leave a sleeping baby in a car.”
