Hannah Faith Cormier was sentenced to five years with hard labor after her 10-month-old daughter died from heat stroke after being left in a car during Cormier's work shift. Authorities say the infant was in the vehicle for about 90 minutes on a day with temperatures near 95°F and arrived at the hospital with a body temperature reported at 109°F. Cormier was arrested in August 2024, indicted in October, and pleaded no contest in July 2025. Prosecutors sought an enhanced sentence because the victim was under 10; the defense pointed to confusion, illness, and counseling completed since the incident.
Louisiana Mother Sentenced to Five Years After 10-Month-Old Dies in Hot Car While She Worked
Jeff Davis Parish jailHannah Faith Cormier's mugshot
A Louisiana mother was sentenced to five years in prison with hard labor after her 10-month-old daughter died from heat-related injuries after being left in a vehicle while the mother worked a shift at a fast-food restaurant.
The Jefferson Davis Parish District Attorney's Office announced in a Jan. 21 press release that Hannah Faith Cormier received a five-year sentence without the benefit of probation, parole, or suspension of sentence. Prosecutors sought an enhanced penalty because the victim was under 10 years old.
Cormier was arrested in August 2024 after investigators say she told police she "inadvertently left" her infant daughter in the car while she worked. According to the Jennings Police Department, the child was inside the vehicle for approximately 90 minutes before being found and taken to a local hospital, where medical staff "worked to obtain a pulse." She was later transferred to another emergency center and was listed in critical condition.
Authorities and media reports said the child later died of what police described as heat stroke. The American Press reported that the infant's body temperature measured about 109°F when she arrived at the hospital; outdoor temperatures that day were reported to be in the mid-90s.
GettyPolice car (stock image)
A grand jury indicted Cormier on Oct. 2, 2024, on a charge of negligent homicide, which Louisiana law defines as the killing of a human being by criminal negligence. Cormier entered a no-contest plea to that charge on July 14, 2025.
Assistant District Attorney Torrie Thibodeaux prosecuted the case and told the court she sought a sentence in the five- to ten-year range. At sentencing, Thibodeaux noted the 90-minute period the child was left in the vehicle on an August day when temperatures were near 95°F.
Cormier's defense attorney, Bill Riley, described the incident as a tragic mistake amid confusing circumstances, saying the mother had been ill and was not expecting to work that day. Riley also noted Cormier has completed parenting and mental health counseling and has been reunited, under supervision, with her four other children.
Jefferson Davis Parish District Attorney Lauren Heinen: "The death of any child is heartbreaking, and losing this 10-month-old baby has deeply affected our whole community. No sentence can bring her back or take away the pain everyone feels. Every child deserves to be protected."
The case received widespread local coverage and highlights the dangers of leaving infants in vehicles, especially on hot days. The facts of the investigation, the criminal charge, the no-contest plea and the court's sentence reflect the seriousness with which the justice system treated the loss of a young life.
Help us improve.
