Hanover mother charged with leaving toddler alone in hot car: police

A Hanover mother has been charged with leaving her 3-year-old son alone in a car for at least 15 minutes over the warm weekend, according to court records.

Samantha Ruth O'Brien, 33, of the first block of West Hanover Street has been charged with endangering the welfare of children. She was committed to York County Prison in lieu of $10,000 bail, according to online court records.

Hanover police responded Sunday afternoon for a report of a child left alone inside of a black Honda sedan parked in an alley behind a home. Officers found the vehicle sitting in the direct sunlight and the toddler buckled in his car seat, court records state. Two of the car doors were open.

The temperature on Sunday afternoon was in the 80s, and police allege the child was left alone in the car for at least 15 minutes before police arrived, the affidavit of probable cause states.

The person who called 911 reported that she unsuccessfully tried to summon the child's parent from inside the home, the affidavit states.

Officers found O'Brien asleep on the bathroom floor inside of the home, the affidavit states. She was taken for a medical evaluation, which determined that she was intoxicated, police allege.

"She did not ask of her child until police told her the child had been left alone in the car," the affidavit states.

Police allege the mother put the toddler at risk of death or serious bodily injury, the affidavit states.

Hanover police did not return a message seeking additional comment.

How fast a car can heat up in warmer temperatures

Kids and Car Safety, a nonprofit organization, held a news conference on Thursday — the first day of summer — to draw attention to hot car deaths and efforts to prevent them. It featured onsies to represent the 1,086 children who lost their lives in hot cars since 1990.

In addition to the deaths, the organization has documented at least 7,500 children who were "saved in the nick of time," but many suffered life-long injuries, president and founder Janette Fennell said during the event which was shared on Facebook Live.

The organization has been calling on the federal government to require automakers to place occupant detection technology in vehicles to prevent hot car deaths, a news release states.

The reminder about hot car safety comes as south-central Pennsylvania is in the midst of an extended heat wave.

If a car is sealed up on an 80-degree day, temperatures inside a vehicle can reach 123 degrees within 60 minutes, said Barry Lambert, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. Many factors are involved, such as the color of the interior of the car, window tinting, the humidity levels, the angle of the sun and more.

Kids and Cars says children have died from heatstroke even when the temperature outside is only 60 degrees.

This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Hanover PA mother left toddler alone in car for 15 minutes: police