Infant son dies after being left in hot car after a Connecticut father allegedly left his one-year-old child inside a vehicle while he went to work at his family’s strawberry farm, according to police.
Kevin Pell contacted authorities last month after discovering his son unresponsive inside the vehicle. Police said Pell told investigators that he had left the child in the car because the boy was sleeping before going to work at the family farm.
According to a search warrant cited in the investigation, Pell initially told a dispatcher that the vehicle’s air conditioning was not running while his son was inside. When officers arrived, however, he allegedly gave a different account and said the air conditioning had been on.
The vehicle was parked in direct sunlight with its windows and sunroof closed. Investigators described the conditions inside the vehicle as not suitable for the child.
Pell reportedly found his son “blue and not breathing” when he returned to the vehicle. He began performing CPR before emergency responders arrived and took over attempts to revive the child.
The boy was taken to Connecticut Children’s Medical Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
Police in East Windsor said Pell has been charged with risk of injury to a child. Authorities have not ruled out additional charges as they continue investigating the circumstances surrounding the child’s death.
Pell appeared in court on Thursday, September 10, but did not enter a plea. He is expected to return to court next month.
The case remains under investigation, and the charge against Pell is an allegation. Authorities will determine whether further charges are warranted as they examine what happened before the child was found inside the vehicle.
The death has drawn attention to the circumstances surrounding the child’s final hours, particularly the decision to leave him inside the vehicle while Pell went to work. Police are continuing to piece together the timeline and the conditions inside the car as the investigation proceeds.
