JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A 1-year-old child was taken last Thursday when their mother left the toddler alone in a car that was running in the parking lot of a store in Tallahassee, according to Kids and Car Safety, citing recent news reports. Police chased the vehicle and arrested the female driver after she ditched the car and ran away. The toddler was not hurt.
Less than two weeks ago, a 1-year-old was discovered on the side of a road still strapped into his car seat in Broward County. A teenager found the toddler in the hot sun.
Police say they believe the child was abandoned by a thief who had stolen the car with the 1-year-old in the back seat.
This year, Kids and Car Safety, a national nonprofit dedicated to saving the lives of children and pets in and around cars, reports that 125 children have been left alone in a car that was then stolen. Last year, that number was 300.
“This is happening every week,” Amber Rollins, director of Kids and Car Safety, warned during an interview on The Morning Show. “While most of the time the children are returned unharmed or abandoned and found in time, that’s not always. Some of these result in high-speed chases and crashes. We’ve had children killed in these cases. Children who have tried to escape and become tangled in the seat belt and were dragged to death.”
Rollins said most of the time, these frightening crimes happen when a parent, out of convenience, leaves a child just for a minute in a car that is running to go into a store to get something at a gas station or retail store. The car theft is a crime of opportunity
“It literally just happens in a minute,” she said.
Press play below to see a video produced by Kids and Car Safety to illustrate how quickly this kind of danger can strike.
Kids and Car Safety said thieves watch for vehicles to be left unattended with the keys inside. Most of the time, they don’t realize that there is a child inside until after they have already stolen the vehicle. The danger to kids is 100% preventable.
Tips for parents:
- Never leave a child of any age or pet alone in a vehicle, even for a minute.
- Use drive-thrus or curbside pick-up so you don’t have to leave your vehicle.
- If a business doesn’t offer curbside delivery, call upon arrival and ask them to bring your order to your car.
- Keep car doors locked and keys on your person when pumping gas with children inside the vehicle.
Click here for more information about the dangers children face when left alone in vehicles.