How many times have you read about babies dying in hot cars because they were forgotten by a parent, left in a parked vehicle? Well, that's not what you're about to read. Oh, a baby died — tragically — in a hot car. But Hannah Randolph, the 23-day-old daughter of Angela and Christopher Randolph, wasn't left behind. Her parents were there, the whole time. And the car? It was running.
According to police, the Randolph family was on a road trip from Ohio to Oklahoma with their two children, ages 23 days and 15 months. They were out on the open road when Hannah, the younger of their two children, died in her car seat, likely from the heat.
Don't think you'd be the parent who forgot their kid in a car? What about the parent whose kid wasn't forgotten?
Police in Oklahoma have arrested Angela and Christopher Randolph in the death of little Hannah. They've charged them both with felony neglect.
According to the cops, the Randolphs were driving their kids in a '90s Grand Am that had no air conditioning and only one window that opened. An autopsy is still pending, but the charges are based on the suspicion that the baby girl died of heat exhaustion because it was 100 degrees outside. The family says they pulled over at a convenience store and realized their daughter wasn't breathing. They called for help, but it was too late.
Did they neglect her? That's for the cops to determine, but I can't help but note that this could happen to nearly anyone.
How many parents have cars with no air conditioning because they just can't afford to get it fixed? I have no shame in saying I've been there. As for the windows, well, power windows are likewise expensive to fix.
Should they have known the baby was in danger? That's hard to say. If you, the adult, are uncomfortable, but making it, do you automatically think that the kids won't?
Maybe. Maybe not.
If nothing else, the story of what happened to Hannah Randolph should be a warning for parents, a reminder that just because you are OK, your baby may NOT be. They are much more fragile than we are, and they need accommodations much more than us, especially in the heat.
Does this story give you pause? Will you be changing anything?
Image via couchlearner/Flickr
