Latest news with #CourtneyFrench
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Yahoo
Alabama toddler dies in hot car while in state custody
The Birmingham Police Department is investigating the death of a 3-year-old boy who was trapped inside a hot car while in the custody of an worker contracted by the Alabama Department of Human Resources, the state's child protective services agency, according to the Jefferson County Medical Examiner's Office and the state Department of Human Resources. Ke'Torrius 'K.J.' Starkes Jr. had been left inside a car parked outside a home in Birmingham, Alabama, for several hours during the middle of the day on Tuesday, the Jefferson County Medical Examiner's Office said. It was humid with temperatures ranging from 93 to 96 degrees during the 12:30 to 5:30 p.m. window when K.J. was allegedly left alone inside the car. Heat index values, which factor in temperature and humidity to determine what it feels like in the shade, ranged from 101 to 105 degrees, according to CNN meteorologists. The family says a worker, who was employed through a company contracted by the Alabama Department of Human Resources, picked K.J. up from daycare at 9:00 a.m. on Tuesday for a supervised visit with his father. That visit ended around 11:30 a.m., according to Courtney French, the family's attorney. 'Rather than properly returning K.J. immediately to daycare, the worker made numerous personal errands with K.J. buckled in a car seat in the back of her car,' French told CNN. CNN has contacted the contract company and the Birmingham Police Department but did not immediately hear back. According to a timeline provided by the family attorney, the employee went home at 12:30 p.m., leaving K.J. 'strapped inside the vehicle, with all windows up and the car engine off.' He was left in the parked car outside the employee's home for more than five hours before the daycare reached out to her to ask why K.J. hadn't returned, French said. 'The worker told law enforcement that it was only then that she realized K.J. was still in her vehicle,' French said, noting that 911 was then called. K.J. was pronounced dead at 6:03 p.m., according to the medical examiner's office. The Alabama Department of Human Resources said the incident occurred while the child was 'in DHR custody' and 'being transported by a contract provider.' The department noted that their contract provider has terminated their employee. 'Due to confidentiality, DHR cannot comment further regarding the identity of the child or the exact circumstances,' the agency said in a statement Saturday. K.J.'s death is the first hot car death in Alabama this year and he is at least the 16th child to die in a hot car nationwide in 2025, according to Amber Rollins, the director of Kids and Car Safety, a nonprofit organization dedicated to its namesake issue. CNN's Linda Lam contributed to this reporting. Solve the daily Crossword
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Daily Mail
Adorable boy, 3, killed after being left in hot car by SOCIAL SERVICES WORKER who was supposed to care for him
A three-year-old boy died after a social services worker left him in a hot car for five hours, according to police. KeTorrius Starkes Jr. was found unresponsive inside the car outside the worker's house in Alabama on Tuesday, after he had reportedly been left there between 12.30pm and 5.30pm. The boy was still in his fastened car seat in the vehicle, which was off and had the windows rolled up, officials said. He was declared dead about 30 minutes after he was found. The temperature inside the car likely exceeded 150 degrees, according to his family. KeTorrius, nicknamed KJ, was in the care of a Department of Human Resources contract worker who was supposed to take him back to day care after a supervised visit with his father, KeTorrius Starkes Sr. Instead of returning the child to day care, the worker, who has not been identified, stopped at a grocery store and tobacco shop before returning to their house, according to a lawyer hired by Starkes Sr. 'A heartbreaking and preventable tragedy,' attorney Courtney French told ABC News. 'Based upon a preliminary investigation, with the current extreme outside temperatures and the heat index of 108 degrees, the interior temperature of the car where KJ was trapped likely exceeded 150 degrees.' The employee was terminated after the child's death, the Alabama Department of Human Resources said. 'The provider has terminated their employee. Due to confidentiality, DHR cannot comment further regarding the identity of the child or the exact circumstances,' the agency said in a statement. It's not clear why the boy had been living with a temporary foster family. KJ's family called for the employee to be face further consequences. His aunt Brittney Johnson said his death was caused by 'neglect.' 'I feel personally that he was neglected and that's the true cause of his death,' she told Local 12. Starkes Sr spoke to the press about his son and said: '[He] knew how to count, knew his colors three years old, knew all the animals. I'm talking about he was very intelligent. He was just joyful.' Meanwhile, several Alabama politicians issued statements in support of the boy's family. 'As a mother and as the Senator for the district where this tragedy happened, I am devastated by the death of little KeTorrius Starks Jr.,' state senator Merika Coleman said, as reported by CBS42. 'We need answers, and we may need to examine state law to make sure this never happens again. My prayers are with his family.' reached out to the Birmingham Police Department about whether the worker could face criminal charges.
