Mother Accused in Baby's Hot Car Death Allowed Halloween With Children

Deja Coleman, 29, a single mother accused of leaving her infant son in a hot car for nearly nine hours, has been permitted to take her two surviving children trick-or-treating. A Gwinnett County judge granted the request Thursday, allowing Coleman to visit all four buildings within Rainbow Village, the Georgia housing community where she is currently residing under GPS monitoring.

The decision comes three months after her one-year-old son, Daniel, was found unresponsive in Coleman's parked car outside the hospital where she worked. Coleman faces charges of second-degree murder and second-degree cruelty to children in connection with the July 29 incident. Investigators allege she forgot Daniel in the back seat after dropping off her two older children at daycare before heading to her shift at Northside Gwinnett Hospital.

Coleman's attorney, Tom Ford, has contended that the tragedy was the result of extreme sleep deprivation, not criminal intent. He argued that his client, who was working nine-hour shifts to support her three children, including a child with autism, had been suffering from a lack of sleep due to Daniel teething. Ford stated that Coleman believed she had dropped off all three children that morning, unaware Daniel remained in his car seat.

Coleman and her children had been living in a protected domestic violence shelter, according to Ford, who suggested she should be viewed as a victim of abuse rather than a criminal. "We've labeled a grieving mother a murderer," Ford said. "I would submit there's no charges at all, because to be tired is not a crime."

Coleman's attorney further explained the concept of "forgotten baby syndrome," which he argues can occur when severe fatigue causes the brain to operate on autopilot, leading to what he described as a "brain glitch." He insisted that any exhausted parent could experience a similar lapse in memory.

A hospital employee discovered the unresponsive baby around 3:50 p.m. and called 911. Off-duty police officers at the hospital attempted to revive Daniel after breaking into the vehicle, but he was already deceased. Police noted that Coleman typically followed a strict morning routine for her children. Detectives initially believed Coleman had been overwhelmed rather than simply distracted, and witnesses described her as devastated upon learning of her son's death. A previous judge found Coleman eligible for bond, determining she did not pose a threat to her surviving children.