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Ohio Toddler Roasted To Death In Hot Room

By Chelsea Hoffman
Published on: 14:36 PST, Aug 15, 2016

An Ohio toddler who died last year has gotten justice now that his own mother has been convicted and sentenced in association with his horrifying death. CBS News reports that Megan Giltz has been sentenced to two years of imprisonment, but does the punishment fit the crime? The details surrounding the death of the 2-year-old boy are absolutely shocking, to say the least.

In October of last year, the body of the 2-year-old Ohio toddler was found in his playpen. Prosecutors say that the room in which the child was kept was extremely hot, with the thermostat set far too high. The temperature in the hot room was reportedly more than 100 degrees — which led to the death of the unnamed tot.

When the Ohio toddler’s body was found, his playpen contained feces and a bottle containing spoiled milk. The child was also decomposing at the time that his body was found. WTOL News reported, in 2015, that Megan Giltz had kept the 2-year-old boy in the upstairs bedroom of her Toledo home. No reports seem to indicate how long it took before the boy’s death was reported to authorities.

Ultimately, the Ohio toddler’s cause of death was heart failure and dehydration associated with the hot environment in which his mother kept him.

This isn’t the first time a child has died by means of extreme heat. Not counting the numerous tragic hot car deaths that occur, some children’s parents take to careless means in order to keep them warm. Last December, a Missouri couple was arrested after their toddler died of hyperthermia due to alleged negligence. Authorities claim that Lucas Barnes and Kathleen Peacock were cooking meth when they kept the 2-year-old boy alone in a sealed room that contained a space heater. In what may have been an attempt at keeping the boy warm and safe, turned in to a tragedy that left him dead — and the two lovers in jail.

In 2014, a 1-year-old child was killed after he was left in a stroller, covered with a blanket, next to a hot space heater. When the infant was admitted to the hospital, his body temperature registered at 150 degrees, and his body was covered with burns.

In 2012, a Kansas mom was arrested after her infant daughter died under truly bizarre circumstances. Police say that the young mother pointed a hairdryer at the crib of her 2-month-old baby in order to keep her warm. However, the dryer, which was left running, made it extremely hot for the baby — which led to her death. At the time of the 2-month-old infant’s death, her body temperature was approximately 105 degrees.

In this latest case, the mother of the deceased Ohio toddler will have the next two years to think about what she did wrong. While it could have all been a horrifying mistake that led to the child’s death, it was still a mistake that can be prevented in the future. Megan Gilt pleaded guilty to endangering children and obstructing official police business. The latter charge came when she reportedly lied to authorities about how long her son had been in the hot bedroom.

Do you think two years of imprisonment is an appropriate punishment for the crime?

[Image via Lucas County Sheriff’s Office/Megan Giltz]

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