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With temperatures expected to reach potentially dangerous levels, members of the Hyattsville Police Department were alerted by a Good Samaritan on Friday afternoon when they found a small girl locked alone in a car.
The incident was reported in the 3800 block of Oliver Street on Friday, July 28.
Upon arrival, officers found a 5-year-old girl locked inside a vehicle with the window cracked, which gave them enough room to reach in and unlock the door to rescue the child.
Investigators later determined that the girl had been locked in the car for several hours while her mother, a woman from Glen Burnie whose name has not been released, visited a home in the area.
On Friday, there was an excessive heat warning issued by the National Weather Service, due to "dangerously hot conditions" with a heat index approaching 110 degrees.
The mother is now facing charges that include:
- Neglect of a minor;
- Unattended child left confined in a vehicle;
- Reckless endangerment.
Child Protective Services has also been notified to investigate.
"It's never okay to leave a young child unattended, but it is particularly dangerous to do so in a vehicle when there is a heat advisory," a spokesperson for the department said.
"Even with a window partially down, temperatures rise quickly and can become deadly. Children, dependent adults, and even pets should simply never be left alone in a vehicle during extreme temperatures."
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