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Bakersfield Mother Faces Manslaughter Charges After Toddler Dies in Hot Car

Her arraignment follows investigators’ finding that an automatic AC cutoff left her sons sweltering in extreme heat, prompting calls for mandatory in-vehicle alert systems.

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 California mom charged as son, 1, dies after being left in car for hours (Unsplash - representational image)
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Overview

  • On June 29, Maya Hernandez left her one-year-old son Amillio and his two-year-old brother strapped and locked in a running car outside a med spa while she underwent a cosmetic procedure.
  • Investigators determined the vehicle’s air conditioning automatically shut off after one hour, leaving the children without cooling for at least 90 minutes as interior temperatures soared.
  • Amillio was hospitalized with a core temperature of 107°F and died shortly before 6 p.m., while his brother survived with a body temperature of 99°F and is now in protective custody.
  • Hernandez has been arraigned on involuntary manslaughter and child cruelty charges, is held on more than $1 million bail, and is scheduled to appear for a preliminary hearing on July 11.
  • The case has renewed advocacy for mandatory in-vehicle alert systems and legislative reforms aimed at preventing further heat-related child deaths in parked cars.