2-year-old girl found dead, dad left her strapped in back of car in 89 degree heat
2-year-old girl found dead, dad left her strapped in back of car in 89 degree heat
A Baltimore man has been charged with homicide after police say he left his 2-year-old daughter strapped to her car sear inside his hot car for 24 hours while he went drinking.
Wilbert Carter, 31, told police he went out drinking Sunday with friends as temperatures reached a scorching 89 degrees. He later went home alone at 7am.
When he awoke Monday at 4pm, he realized his daughter Leasia Carter was missing. He found her unresponsive in his car, which was parked down the street.
She was rushed to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead after police say she sat in Carter vehicle with the windows rolled up for at least 24 hours.
Raven Jenkins witnessed the horrific moment Carter discovered his daughter in the car.
‘He’s walking down the street. He’s crying,’ Jenkins told WBAL. ‘He’s got a little kid in his hand, a lady comes out of the house or walks out the street and they just start screaming.’
Carter told police he’d been drinking on Sunday, but was apparently unsure for how long or when he parted ways with his daughter.
‘The father went home at some point in time last night. This afternoon when he woke up, he discovered that his child wasn’t there,’ Baltimore police Maj. Stanley Brandford said.
‘Right now, we know that the child was inside of that vehicle sometime (Sunday), but for certain we know that the child was left there all day (Monday). Of course with the temps and everything I’m pretty sure that the child cannot survive in that type of condition.’
When questioned by police, Carter said he had sole custody of the little girl at the time of her death
He was charged Monday with child abuse and homicide.
He remained held on Tuesday. According to the Baltimore Sun, records show Carter was arrested in 2005 on attempted murder charges that were later dropped.
