Mother charged after child left alone in vehicle

Eight-year-old found in car in -8 C weather

Edmonton police have charged a woman after she allegedly left her eightyear-old daughter alone in a vehicle at a shopping centre for more than an hour in cold weather.

On Friday, Nov. 29, police responded around 8 a.m. to a call of a child left unattended in a vehicle at the South Edmonton Common shopping centre. The temperature was -8 C.

Police arrived and found a girl in the rear seat of the vehicle. The girl unlocked the vehicle and was placed in the warm patrol car.

She told police she left the vehicle at one point to look for her mother in the store, but returned when she couldn’t find her.

The mother allegedly left the child unattended for more than an hour. She was charged with causing a child to be in need of intervention under the Child, Youth and Family Enhancement Act.

“Although the young girl was dressed appropriately for the winter weather conditions, the vehicle had substantially cooled down,” Const. Kamlesh Patel said in a news release.

“A vehicle is not a babysitter. Leaving a child unattended in a vehicle goes beyond the weather conditions, whether it is a cold winter day or hot summer day.”

“The vehicle had substantially cooled down.” CON ST. KAMLESH PATEL

Police laid 20 charges last summer, including three criminal charges, in connection to children being left alone in vehicles.