Woman arrested after bystanders pull child from hot SUV
HCSO photo
SPRING HILL (FOX 13) - A Hernando County woman was arrested after she allegedly left a child in a hot SUV while she shopped in a sporting goods store.
Deputies say they were called to the Sports Authority in Spring Hill on Sunday after bystanders pulled a child from the back seat of a Dodge Durango. The witnesses said the child -- whose age was not provided -- had been inside for at least 10 minutes and was "sweating profusely" before they opened the SUV's unlocked rear door and pulled the child out.
When they came out of the store, Shelley and Brandi Steele allegedly told deputies that they'd only been inside for five minutes, but a check of the store's surveillance footage showed it had been 22 minutes.
Brandi Steele was arrested and charged with child neglect. Officials did not specify what relationship Steele had with the child.
The child, meanwhile, was examined by Hernando County Fire/Rescue and checked out OK.