BAKER COUNTY, Fla. – The Baker County Sheriff’s Office arrested and charged Tiffany Dillman, 26, with four counts of child neglect after they found four children left in a hot car outside a restaurant in Macclenny on Friday. The mom is accused of leaving them unattended for at least 20 minutes.
It was at a Wendy’s restaurant on S. 6th Street around 3 p.m. last Friday when Baker County deputies responded to a 911 call about children left unattended in a hot SUV.
According to deputies, the vehicle was parked in an area of the parking that was receiving direct sunlight. Although the windows were rolled down, deputies said a 2, 4, 6, and 7-year-old who were inside the vehicle were covered in sweat and their faces were red. The outdoor temperature at the time was 97 degrees with a heat index of 108.
Deputies also said the SUV did not have a working air conditioner. As the children were being escorted into the restaurant to cool off, Dillman was taken into custody. Dillman reportedly told a deputy she went inside the restaurant and took two customers’ orders to help Wendy’s employees on shift because they were too busy.
One Wendy’s employee said that Dillman works at the restaurant. Another employee said that Dillman is a good mother and that she has never seen her leave her children unattended in a vehicle.
News4JAX went to Dillman’s home on Tuesday to see if she was willing to explain her side of the story.
“I’m not talking about it. But have a great day,” she said.
The hot vehicle incident that unfolded in the parking lot last Friday came just days after 10-month-old Ariya Paige died after she was left in a hot SUV by her babysitter. That incident happened just one mile from the Wendy’s.
Ariya’s family held a celebration of life on Tuesday to honor her. News4JAX spoke to two of the people who attended that event as they were leaving Wendy’s to get their reaction to hearing about another case of children being left in a hot vehicle.
MORE: The joyful life and tragic death of Baby Ariya
“If she didn’t have a babysitter, please just take the kids out and bring them into Wendy’s in the air conditioning and not just leave them out in this heat,” said Livia Ruise.
“That’s just crazy and too close together with that kind of stuff happening. People are not thinking. This has been the hottest summer ever for us. Why would you want to leave a child in a car like that?” Roxanne Lloyd said.
The four children were released into the custody of Dillman’s wife.
DCF has also launched an investigation into the matter.