On a day when temperatures rose as high as 111 degrees, a father from Arizona is accused of leaving his 2-year-old daughter in a hot car for around three hours.
Christopher Scholtes, the 37-year-old defendant, is accused with second-degree murder and abusing children or adults who are vulnerable.
According to Tucson NBC affiliate KVOA and CBS affiliate KOLD, prosecutors sought a $1 million bond, but the defense countered that he was not a flight risk, had no prior criminal record other than a DUI from fifteen years ago, and posed no threat to the public or law enforcement.
Police in the town of Marana, near Tucson, said that on Tuesday, they and the Northwest Fire District were called to a residence in the 5100 block of W. Paytons Court in reference to a youngster who had been left unresponsive in a car.
When he got home, defendant Scholtes allegedly told the police that his 2-year-old daughter had been dozing off in her car seat. Scholtes allegedly said that he left her in the car with the air conditioning on because he didn’t want to wake her.
Authorities assert that his account does not match the case’s facts.
Scholtes stated they got back home about 2:00 p.m., according to the police. On the other hand, video captured the car arriving around 12:53 p.m. About 4 p.m., the wife arrived home from work.
According to the police, when she got there, the AC was off and the car had stopped running.
“9-1-1 was called, and the mother performed CPR until NWFD and MPD arrived,” police stated. “NWFD performed life-saving measures, and the child was transported to Banner University Medical Center. Unfortunately, the child was pronounced deceased.”
The night of the event, police detectives obtained a search warrant, and they reported discovering CCTV footage from surrounding homes. The girl had been left in the car for around three hours, according to investigators.
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Defendant Scholtes was taken into custody at the Pima County Adult Detention Center on Friday morning after his arrest.
Erika Scholtes, the mother, spoke on his behalf at the Friday hearing. She desired for him to return home so she could grieve.
“This was a big mistake and I think that this doesn’t represent him,” she stated. “And I just want that the girls to see their father so that I don’t have to tell them tonight that they’re going to endure another loss.”
According to reports, defendant Scholtes was rated as having the lowest risk by pretrial services. The court took note of his solid community connections and clean record. On August 1, a preliminary hearing is scheduled.
