A 1-year-old boy was found dead in a vehicle parked at Northside Gwinnett Hospital in Lawrenceville after being left in a hot car; arresting officers say life-saving efforts were unsuccessful. The child's mother, 29-year-old Deja Coleman, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder and second-degree felony cruelty to children. Temperatures that day reached 90°F, and the car's interior measured about 117°F approximately one hour after responders removed the child. The nonprofit Kids And Car Safety listed this as the 17th U.S. hot-car death in 2026; authorities and the NHTSA reiterated precautions caregivers can take to prevent such tragedies.
1-Year-Old Dies After Being Left in Hot Car at Georgia Hospital; Mother Arrested on Murder and Child Cruelty Charges
A U.S. map showing where children have died in hot cars as of July 30, 2026. A death in Georgia on July 29 marked the 17th.
A 1-year-old boy was found dead inside a vehicle parked in the employee lot of Northside Gwinnett Hospital in Lawrenceville, Georgia, on Wednesday after being left in a hot car at his mother's workplace, authorities said.
Lawrenceville police responded to the hospital at approximately 3:50 p.m. following a report of an unresponsive child locked inside a vehicle. Officers located the car in the employee parking area and performed life-saving measures, but the child was discovered dead in his car seat, the department said.
The child's mother, 29-year-old Deja Coleman, was arrested after an investigation and was transported to the Gwinnett County Detention Center. She faces charges of second-degree murder and second-degree felony cruelty to children.
Coleman told investigators that she had dropped her two other children at daycare and then forgot to return to the vehicle to retrieve the baby. She had arrived at the hospital parking lot at about 6:55 a.m., according to law enforcement accounts.
AccuWeather reported a high of 90°F in Lawrenceville that day. Lawrenceville Police Captain Dena Pauly told reporters that the temperature inside the vehicle measured 117°F roughly one hour after responders broke a window and removed the child.
Heat Risks and Context
Experts warn that a parked car can become dangerously hot within minutes: sunlight heats dashboards, seats and other surfaces, which then radiate heat and cause interior temperatures to climb rapidly. Children are particularly vulnerable because their core temperature can rise three to five times faster than an adult's. Medical professionals say heatstroke can begin when body temperature reaches about 104°F, and temperatures of 107°F or higher can be fatal.
Broader Picture
Kids And Car Safety, a nonprofit that tracks pediatric hot-car fatalities, listed the Lawrenceville incident as the 17th hot-car death in the United States in 2026 and the first reported in Georgia this year. The death occurred one day after a 7-month-old girl died in a hot car in Vernal, Utah.
Safety Advice: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration urges caregivers to check the entire vehicle before walking away, even when no child is expected to be present. Placing a phone, purse, work badge or briefcase in the back seat can help serve as a reminder that a child is in the car. Caregivers should keep vehicles locked when parked, store keys and fobs out of children's reach, and ask daycare providers to call immediately if a child does not arrive as expected. Anyone who sees a child alone in a vehicle should call 911 right away.
The Lawrenceville Police Department and hospital officials did not immediately release additional details about the investigation. The case remains under investigation and further updates may be provided by local authorities.
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