Overview
- Maya Hernandez, 20, pleaded no contest on Feb. 11 to involuntary manslaughter and two counts of child cruelty in Kern County Superior Court.
- Sentencing is set for March 5 in Bakersfield, with a 15-year prison term expected under a deal that dismissed a murder charge.
- Prosecutors say she left her one-year-old and two-year-old in a Toyota Corolla hybrid outside a Bakersfield spa on June 29, 2025.
- Police reports state the vehicle likely shut off after about an hour, outside temperatures were about 101°F, the cabin may have exceeded 140°F, and the infant’s internal temperature reached roughly 107.2°F.
- Jurors in December convicted her of child abuse but deadlocked on murder and manslaughter counts, and the older child survived and has recovered.