Atlanta mother charged with murder of 1-year-old who she left in hot car for 6-hour hair appointment

Atlanta police have charged a woman with second-degree murder after she left her one-year-old daughter in a hot car for almost six hours to get her hair done. Dijanelle Etta Fowler, who surrendered on Monday (17 July) night, was also charged with child cruelty and concealing the death.

Police said the baby named Skylar died on 15 June and added that the case unfolded when the 25-year-old called 911 from the parking deck of Emory Hospital in Atlanta and asked for help for her daughter. When emergency workers reached the place, they found Fowler "unconscious" and baby Skylar dead in the car.

The officers then believed that Fowler had suffered a seizure, and that her daughter had died after, while trapped in the car.

However, after further investigations DeKalb County investigators found that Skylar had been dead for much longer and they checked Fowler's Google searches and CCTV footage to find out the exact time of death.

It was found that Fowler actually drove around for hours with the lifeless body of her daughter before reaching the Emory Hospital's parking deck. It was also learned that the woman had conducted a Google search of "seizure symptoms".

The latest incident comes days after a couple was charged with the death of their 11-month-old daughter, who died while being left in a car for hours. Her body was found with insects over her eyes and nose.

The couple – Travis McCullough, 30, and Jessica Tollett, 24 – were arrested on Sunday (9 July) for criminal homicide and neglect, a day after the infant died, authorities said.