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A New Jersey father was charged over the death of his eight-week-old infant after allegedly leaving her in a hot car “for an extended period of time.”
Avraham Chaitovsky, 28, was charged on Tuesday with endangering the welfare of a child, the Ocean County Prosecutor’s office announced.
The tragedy occurred on Monday around 1.45pm, when police responded to a report of a pediatric patient in cardiac arrest in Lakewood Township. The baby, who has not been publicly named, was pronounced dead at the scene, the prosecutor’s office said.
Authorities found that Chaitovsky left his daughter “alone in his vehicle for an extended period of time,” the office said.
The exact amount of time is not immediately known, but the father allegedly left his child in the car while he attended Kollel Cheshek Shlomo synagogue, according to News12.
Historic weather data shows that the temperatures around 2pm hit 95 degrees.
“The act of leaving the infant in the car unattended for such a long period of time was the cause and manner of the infant’s death,” authorities said.
The investigation is ongoing, authorities said, and Chaitovsky could face additional charges.
He is currently being held in Ocean County Jail, prosecutors said.
The New Jersey infant was the 11th child to have died in a hot car this year alone, according to Kids and Cars Safety.
An average of 38 children die in hot cars each year in the US, the site said.
