A Georgia hospital worker has been charged with second-degree murder and cruelty to children after her one-year-old son died after being left in a car for approximately nine hours, police said. The vehicle's interior reached 117 degrees Fahrenheit.
Deja Coleman, 29, was arrested after her son, Daniel, was found unresponsive in a parked car outside Northside Gwinnett Hospital in Lawrenceville, Georgia, on July 29. Police reported that Coleman drove to work at 6:55 a.m. after dropping off her two older children at daycare. She did not realize her youngest son remained in the car, strapped into his rear-facing car seat.
Investigators believe the child was inside the vehicle for more than eight hours as Coleman worked. Around 4 p.m., another hospital employee noticed the child and alerted emergency services. First responders attempted life-saving measures after breaking into the car, but the toddler could not be revived.
Officers later measured the interior temperature of the car at 117 degrees Fahrenheit about an hour after the child had been removed and the window broken. Authorities identified the vehicle as belonging to Coleman, who worked at the hospital. She was taken to the police department for an interview.
Lawrenceville Police arrested Coleman and booked her into the Gwinnett County Detention Center. Authorities have stated they are not accusing Coleman of intentionally causing her son's death, but evidence at the scene supported the felony charges. Police Captain Dena Pauly said Coleman described the morning routine as normal and that she forgot her son was in the car. Pauly described Coleman as "devastated."
Coleman's two other children were in the custody of their father. Pauly noted that one of the other children has medical needs requiring special attention, which was why Coleman usually took that child to daycare first.
Hot-car deaths are a significant cause of child fatalities in the U.S., with a child dying from heatstroke in a vehicle approximately every ten days. Experts emphasize that temperatures inside parked cars can rise rapidly, making infants and toddlers particularly vulnerable. Many such tragedies involve caregivers who forget a child is in the car after a disruption to their normal routine.
According to the National Safety Council, there have been 17 pediatric hot car deaths in the U.S. in the current year. In 2025, 34 children died in hot cars nationwide, including two in Georgia.
Pauly advised parents during a press conference to "slow down in life" and seek help if needed, emphasizing self-care to better care for children. The investigation is ongoing, and police have not ruled out additional charges as they review the circumstances of the toddler's death. Coleman remains in custody.