Grandmother arrested for leaving toddler in hot car in Grand Prairie
GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas - Grand Prairie police on Thursday arrested the grandmother of a little girl who was left in a hot car last week.
The toddler, who is now in good condition and expected to recover, was found last Wednesday unresponsive in a car in a shopping center near Highway 360 and Camp Wisdom Boulevard.
Her grandmother, 51-year-old Maritza Charles, told police she didn't realize she had forgotten the 2-year-old girl in the car while shopping because she fell asleep during the driver there. She is now charged with child endangerment, a felony.
Police said the young girl is extremely lucky to be alive. It appears she was in the car for about an hour and at the time she was rescued she had a core temperature of 107 degrees. A nearby clothing store clerk performed CPR until paramedics arrived and the girl survived.
READ MORE: Store employee helps save 2-year-old left in hot car
“Somewhere during those life saving measures, call it a spiritual event, we got a pulse and were able to revive and rescue the child,” said Lyle Gensler with the Grand Prairie Police Department.
But even then, police say they couldn't be sure if the heat caused permanent injuries.
“We felt very comfortable the child would possibly live, but we didn't know the extent of the injuries until it was four or five days later,” said Gensler.
Charles was being held in the Grand Prairie Detention Center on a $10,000 bond as of Thursday evening.