Indiana woman to spend 30 years in prison after her son dies in a hot car

An Indiana woman whose son died in a red-hot car while she slept while intoxicated received a 30-year prison sentence, writes People.

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Britney Wihebrink said she deserves to go to jail after pleading guilty to neglecting her child.

The mother of a 2-year-old Indiana boy who died after climbing into the back seat of a red-hot car in 2018 was sentenced to 30 years in prison.

On the afternoon of September 8, 2018, Britney Wihebrink took a nap with her son Jackson Stalts. Before going to bed, she saw him alive for the last time.

“Her 2-year-old son was able to leave the apartment and climbed into Wiehebrink's car parked in the parking lot,” the Delaware County District Attorney's Office said in a news release. “He locked himself in the car and later lost consciousness.”

A neighbor found the boy and called 911 at an apartment complex in Daville, Indiana. The child died on the way to the nearest hospital.

An autopsy revealed that the boy died of "hyperthermia due to increased temperature in the confined space," according to a press release.

Wihebrink, 30, who told authorities she was intoxicated, pleaded guilty to child neglect. Her blood alcohol level at the time of arrest was 0.155 (this is a mild degree of intoxication - from 0,3 ‰ to 1,5 ‰).

On the subject: What does a forgotten child experience? Minute by minute

Following a hearing on Wednesday, July 29, when she was sentenced to 30 years, Attorney Eric Hoffman said it was her responsibility to protect her own child.

“Prison is the only appropriate place for a parent who so unforgivably neglects their child that the child dies as a result,” he said. “It breaks my heart to see innocent children dying at such a young age because of the negligence or cruelty of their parents.”

Local newspaper The Star Press reported that Wychebrink had accepted the verdict and said she deserved to be jailed.

“I will never again be able to hear [Jackson’s] laugh, feel his hug, kiss him or take him to the park,” the newspaper quotes the woman as saying. “If I could go back in time and change anything, I would do it.” I deserve to go to jail, but I also need help. I want to work on my alcohol addiction."

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