A Hammond man is facing a second-degree murder charge after St. Tammany Parish sheriff's deputies say he left his toddler daughter buckled inside a hot car for more than nine hours on Sunday.
Sheriff's deputies say Joseph Boatman's 21-month-old daughter died inside the car at a Madisonville home. According to investigators, Boatman strapped the child in her car seat after picking her up from a relative's house early Sunday morning and left her in the car when he went back in the home.
"After strapping the toddler in her carseat, Boatman went back inside the residence and never returned to the vehicle."
Shortly before noon, the girl was found dead.
"A family member located the girl unresponsive inside the vehicle."
The National Weather Service says at the time it was 88 degrees and the heat index made it feel like 98 degrees outside. The Weather Service says, "The temperature inside a vehicle can rise 20 degrees in as little as 10 minutes, and 50 degrees in an hour... The inside of a car acts like a greenhouse, where actual temperatures inside the vehicle can reach 120°F in minutes and approach 150°F in as little as an hour!"
Deputies say Boatman had been drinking alcohol.
“This is a devastating loss that no family ever wants to face,” St. Tammany Parish Sheriff Randy Smith said. “When a child is left in a vehicle, especially on a day when the heat index climbs over 100 degrees, the outcome can turn deadly in a matter of minutes. This case involved compromised judgment, and the result was heartbreaking.”
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