finding that where a three-month-old infant victim died of heatstroke, the defendant was reckless in leaving the infant locked in an automobile for four hours on a hot summer day
How later courts described this case
- finding that where a three-month-old infant victim died of heatstroke, the defendant was reckless in leaving the infant locked in an automobile for four hours on a hot summer day
- defendant left child unattended in vehicle for four hours, causing child’s death
Written by the judges who cited it.
The opinion
JUSTICE TULLY, specially concurring:
I specially concur because while I agree with the result of the majority opinion, I would have emphasized the severity of the crime in this case.
I would like to comment on defendant’s complaint that the sentence was excessive. The range of a sentence for an involuntary manslaughter conviction is two to five years. In this case, the sentence was three years’ probation, with the conditions of counseling and six months in custody. I believe the trial judge imposed a more than fair sentence considering that a three-month-old child died of heat stroke, and Dr. Donoghue concluded that “parental neglect [was] a significant factor” in the child’s death.
Jeffrey’s life was every bit as precious as any other human being’s. However, defendant’s actions showed that her social life and sleep took precedence over Jeffrey’s well-being. Defendant kept Jeffrey in the car all night while she was out socializing, had a habit of leaving Jeffrey in the car alone, and, in a final act of selfishness, left Jeffrey in a severely hot car so she could get uninterrupted sleep. As a result, Jeffrey was left alone to cry in a car with temperatures exceeding 115 degrees. Unfortunately, Jeffrey’s cries for his mother were to no avail. The exposure of Jeffrey’s three-month-old body to the extreme heat caused sunburn, hemorrhages throughout his heart, and blood to fill his lungs. The cost of defendant’s feeble attempt at motherhood is the untimely loss of an innocent young life. Defendant’s mild sentence is in no way disproportionate to the heinous crime at issue here.
Therefore, I specially concur.