Police: Woman leaves kids in hot car while being booked for doing same thing days before

RICHMOND, Va. – A Virginia woman left her two children in a hot car while being booked on a charge of committing the same crime a couple of weeks earlier, police said Wednesday.

Lt. Col. Alisa Gregory of the Henrico County Sheriff’s Office said Laquanda Newby, 25, faces three misdemeanour counts of contributing the delinquency or abuse of a child.

According to Gregory, the first charge is based on an allegation that Newby left her children in her car May 26 while she shopped at a Sam’s Club. Police made arrangements for her to come to the Henrico County Courthouse at a later date to be booked on that charge.

When she showed up for that appointment Monday, police say she again left the 6-year-old and 1-year-old boys in the car with the windows rolled up. Gregory said passers-by noticed the children and alerted deputies, who removed them from the unlocked car.

“The temperature was in the 90s and it was very humid,” Gregory said. “The kids’ shirts were wet” with sweat, but they did not appear to suffer any ill effects, she said.

Gregory said the children were in the car for at least two hours. Police called their father, who came and got them while Newby was charged with two additional counts. Gregory said Newby did not tell police why she left the children in the vehicle.

Newby was released from the Henrico County jail on Wednesday on $2,000 bond. Gregory did not know whether Newby has an attorney, and a working telephone number for her could not be located.