A woman in Virginia is facing murder charges of an 11-month old after leaving the child and a dog unattended for hours in her hot car.
Kristen Danielle Graham, 40, is currently being held at the Virginia Peninsula Regional Jail on a felony murder charge.
Graham was supposed to be watching the child, Myrical Wicker, at the time of her death. The woman had been tasked with babysitting the child numerous times before the incident last fall in September.
Authorities said the dog that was also left in the car passed away and that the heat index that day was at least 100 degrees.
York-Poquoson Sheriff Ron Montgomery said, “The child’s mother was 17-years old at the time of the incident and Graham was serving as her child and dog’s caretaker.”
An 80-year-old man who Graham also lived with was the one who brought Myrical to an emergency room after discovering the infant in his car.
“The hospital’s medical staff then went out to the car and observed a black plastic trash bag in the hatch of the vehicle. Inside the bag was the 11-month old deceased child,” Montgomery added.
Graham was initially charged with felony child neglect and a misdemeanor for animal cruelty last September. But after an autopsy report was filed earlier this month, the sheriff’s office put out a warrant for Graham’s arrest on a felony murder charge.
Graham turned herself into police last Thursday. The sheriff’s office said that Graham is now being held without bond.
