Baby Left in Car Dies After Father Is Arrested

An 8-month-old baby girl has died after she was left in a parked car for hours when her father was arrested.

Police in Snellville, Georgia, said that Davied Japez McCorry Whatley, 20, came into the police department at about 2:15 p.m. on Tuesday to speak with a custodian, WAGA reported.

When officers learned that Whatley had a warrant for his arrest for violating probation, he was arrested and taken to the Gwinnett County Jail in Lawrenceville.

Nearly seven hours later, a woman arrived at Piedmont Eastside Emergency Room with her 8-month-old granddaughter, identified as Whatley’s daughter, WXIA said. The little girl was pronounced dead.

The grandmother said that the baby had been left in Whatley’s car following a traffic stop. Snellville police were notified about the death and found Whatley’s car parked near the dumpsters in the Snellville City Hall parking lot.

Investigators say Whatley did not mention his daughter while he was at the police department, and his entire visit was recorded by body cameras. Investigators have not said how the grandmother knew where the find the infant.

Temperatures in the metropolitan Atlanta area Tuesday afternoon reached 86 degrees. It wasn’t clear if any windows were left open in the car.

Snellville police called in the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to lead the probe into the death.

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[Featured image: Snellville City Hall/Google Maps]