Father Charged After Leaving Infant in Hot Car

A father in Arizona is facing serious accusations after allegedly leaving his infant daughter in a hot car, resulting in her death. Christopher Scholtes, 37, is suspected of being distracted by adult videos while his 2-year-old daughter, Parker, was left unattended in his vehicle for over three hours.

On a blistering 109-degree day last summer, Scholtes parked his Honda SUV in the driveway of their Marana home while he occupied himself with video games and beverages as Parker suffered from heat exposure. This tragic event occurred on July 9, 2024.

Initially, Scholtes claimed that after returning from shopping at around 12:30 p.m., he had only briefly left Parker in the car with the air conditioning on. He stated that he didn’t want to wake her up. However, court documents later indicated that he had actually been engrossed in gaming for more than three hours before discovering his daughter unconscious when he arrived home at 4 p.m.

Realizing the car’s engine would only run for 30 minutes without intervention, Scholtes later admitted his awareness of that fact.

Police reports revealed that Scholtes’ two older daughters mentioned they had sometimes been left alone in the vehicle while he was distracted, either playing games or managing household tasks.

Text messages disclosed during a court hearing indicated a concerning pattern of neglect. In one exchange, his wife, Erica, expressed her frustration: “I can’t tell you how many times I’ve told you not to leave the kids in the car,” she wrote, devastated by the loss. “We lost her, but she was perfect.”

Scholtes has since expressed regret, stating he “killed our baby.” Despite being charged with first-degree murder for this incident, he continues to assert his innocence.