Grandmother Leaves Infant in Hot Car for Eight Hours After Missing Daycare Drop-Off, Charged in His Death

A 69-year-old woman in Tennessee has been charged after a seven-month-old baby died in a hot car while she worked at a public library, police said.

The accused is identified as Linda Stevens. She was arrested on April 24 and was charged with criminally negligent homicide. Authorities claimed that she left her foster grandson, Gabrielle Alonzo, inside her locked car from about 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on April 15. The car was parked in a lot with little shade outside the Monterey Branch Library in Putnam County.

Putnam County Sheriff Eddie Farris said Stevens had been asked to drop the baby off at daycare that morning. The child’s foster mother, who is Steven’s daughter, gave her the responsibility to make the stop on the way to work because she trusted her. But Stevens told police she did not take the baby to daycare as planned.

District Attorney General Bryant Dunaway said Stevens placed the infant in a rear car seat and drove to work. She then went inside and clocked in, leaving the baby in the car.

Hours later, the daycare staff noted that the baby had not arrived and called the foster mother, who then contacted Stevens. It was then that Stevens went back to the car. A 911 call was made around 4 p.m. for an unresponsive child.

Officers arrived at the scene immediately, but the baby had already died. Deputies tried CPR, Farris said, but they could not revive him.

Weather records show the temperature in Monterey reached 82°F that day under clear skies. Experts say the temperature inside a parked car can rise much higher. Under those conditions, it may have reached between 140°F and 155°F. Officials said it can take about one hour for a child’s body temperature to reach a deadly level of 104°F, and in this case, the infant was inside the car for about eight hours.

The Putnam County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) led the investigation and obtained a warrant for Steven’s arrest. She was charged on a $50,000 bond, which she posted the same day. She is expected to enter a plea at a later court date, and if convicted, she could face up to six years in prison.

Federal data shows many similar cases follow a pattern. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that over half of hot car deaths happen when a caregiver forgets a child. Nearly half of those cases involve a missed daycare drop-off. Most victims are under two years old.