A 3-year-old daughter died after being locked inside a hot car in Anaheim amid a prolonged heat wave with temperatures reaching triple digits. Her mother was also in the vehicle.
Sandra Hernandez, 41, the girl’s mother, was detained on suspicion of involuntary manslaughter and felony child negligence, the Anaheim Police Department said in a news release on Monday.
Authorities did not divulge the girl’s identity.
Officers arrived at the 1300 block of Fashion Lane around 4:30 p.m. on Friday after receiving reports of a medical emergency, according to the Anaheim Police Department. According to Anaheim Police Sgt. Matt Sutter, a family member contacted 911 after finding Hernandez unconscious and her daughter in the vehicle and attempting to offer first aid.
According to Sutter, it was approximately 104 degrees outside when cops got to the report. According to the National Weather Service, temperatures inside a car on a hot day can reach 20 to 40 degrees higher than the outside temperature in minutes, even with the windows cracked.
Officers attempted CPR on the girl while the mother was unresponsive in the white Ford Expedition. Both were transported to a hospital, where the daughter was pronounced dead. According to authorities, Hernandez and her kid had been in the SUV for an unknown amount of time before a family member discovered them trapped inside.
Police discovered many empty alcohol bottles in the vehicle. The girl appears to have died as a result of complications from heatstroke, but the formal cause of death has yet to be determined, according to Sutter. An autopsy is scheduled to determine the cause and time of death.
Her family named her Ily Elizabeth Ruiz in a GoFundMe effort set up to help the family pay for funeral costs.
“ILY was such a beautiful and innocent soul with a very loving and bubbly personality,” said Nancy Salamanca, a cousin of the girl’s father, in the post.
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She claims Ily’s father, Juan Ruiz, will have to move from Texas to California to care for his 5-year-old kid, whom he had with Hernandez and was in Hernandez’s custody.
In an emotional TikTok video, Ruiz stated that his son is now staying with a relative, but that he will battle for custody.
Ruiz admitted he was a “wreck” and requested assistance “in any shape, color, f— form.”
Hernandez was interviewed by detectives at the hospital and arrested after being medically cleared, according to authorities. She was booked into Anaheim Police Department’s Detention Facility.
Anyone with information on the case can contact the Police Department at (714) 765-1900 or Orange County Crime Stoppers at (855) TIP-OCCS.