Mother Charged After 21-Month-Old Daughter Dies From Being Left In Hot Car For Over Two Hours
Twenty-five-year-old Chaya Shurkin has been charged after allegedly leaving her 21-month-old daughter to die in a hot car.
According to a report from People, the Lakewood, New Jersey, mom left her young daughter in a hot vehicle for more than two hours on May 6, a day when temperatures reached in the 60s and 70s. Shurkin was charged yesterday with second degree endangering the welfare of a child. According to the outlet, a neighbor called 911 after finding a young girl in the car in distress. When police arrived on the scene, the neighbor was performing CPR until the paramedics got there to take over.
Ultimately, the paramedics transported the 21-month-old to a local hospital. Unfortunately, she never recovered and died. The Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office released more information about the tragic incident on their Facebook page with prosecutor Bradley Billhimer telling the public that after investigating the incident, it was determined that leaving the young girl in the car for an extended period of time ultimately lead to her death.
“A thorough and extensive investigation revealed that the child had been left alone in Shurkin’s motor vehicle for approximately two-and-one-half hours with the car turned off, in the heat,” Billhimer said.
The Facebook post has earned a lot of attention from readers, amassing over 1,000 comments and upward of 800 shares. Many angry members of the public took to the post to slam the mother for her actions.
Chaya Shurkin is charged with second-degree endangering the welfare of a child in the death of the 21-month-old little girl. https://t.co/GdanMSf5nZ pic.twitter.com/mDaLuftmQZ
— ABC13 Houston (@abc13houston) June 18, 2019
“Ridiculous to think anyone would think of doing this after everyone being aware how detrimental & fatal this is. Inexcusable really,” one user wrote.
“As a mother of two, I’m sorry she lost her child but there is no plausible excuse to justify leaving your child unattended in a car,” another chimed in.
“Should be charged with murder or man slaughter,” one more Facebook user chimed in.
Back in May, it was reported that there was a miscommunication between the child’s mother and father, which led to her being left in the hot car for an extended period of time. The Lakewood Township Police Department has not replied to those comments.
Sadly, this is not the first incident of a child dying after being left in a hot car unattended.
According to No Heat Stroke, at least 806 children have died from pediatric vehicular heatstroke after being left in a hot car. This is an estimated 37 kids per year, which is far too many. It’s never safe for a child to be left in a car unattended, even when the windows are cracked open.
