DESTREHAN, La. — Authorities say a 2-year-old girl died after she was left inside a hot car in St. Charles Parish for more than six hours.
The St. Charles Parish Sheriff's Office said the girl's aunt, 48-year-old Lezly Sanabria has been arrested and faces a negligent homicide charge.
Investigators say Lezly Sanabria returned to her home on Carolyn Drive in Destrehan around 1:30 p.m. on Oct. 4 after shopping with 2-year-old Avril Sanabria and the girl's grandmother. Lezly told deputies that after unloading her car, she went inside thinking that the girl had gone to her grandmother's home which is on the same property.
About six hours later, Lezly returned to the car and discovered Avril unconscious and not breathing inside the car. Paramedics were called to the home around 8 p.m. and found the Avril dead inside the home.
The sheriff's office said temperatures at the time reached as high as 97 degrees with a heat index of 102 degrees inside the car. Investigators say temperatures inside the car could have reached upwards of 140 degrees within 10-15 minutes.
Lezly Sanabria was arrested Tuesday and booked into the Nelson Coleman Correctional Center in Killona, La.
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