by TONY KIM
A Fullerton, Calif., couple accused of leaving their 3-year-old in a hot car this past Sunday says that the child must have snuck into their Nissan Quest without their knowledge. The attorney for Ho Kim, 33, and Tae Kim, 35, who were arrested on suspicion of felony endangerment, said they handed their children off to family members of Tae Kim’s to babysit, and then left to go to a shopping mall, according to a report in the Korea Times.
“Of the three kids, their second oldest daughter got in the car without her parents knowing and fell asleep,” the attorney told the Korea Times.
The Orange County District Attorney’s Office told KoreAm today that the case is still under review, and the couple has not yet been formally charged.
The husband and wife are back at home with their children, after posting bail. Children’s protective services has allowed the 3-year-old and her two siblings to return to the parents’ custody, the couple’s attorney told the Korea Times.
Temperatures on Sunday reached about 91 degrees at the time the girl was in the family’s minivan, with interior temperature at about 104 degrees, authorities said. Police believe she was there for 15 to 20 minutes before a passerby spotted her in the vehicle and contacted police.
This incident occurred after similar cases, which resulted in the deaths of toddlers, received widespread media coverage in the past few weeks. The Daily Mail reported that 18 children in the U.S. have died this year from heatstroke after being left in hot cars.
Image via KTLA