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14h ago

Mother Charged With Murder in Hot-Car Death Permitted to Attend Son's Funeral

The case tests whether Georgia will treat a hot-car death tied to alleged catastrophic memory failure as a criminal homicide.

This case presents facts that make Georgia prosecutors' decision to throw the book at Deja Coleman difficult to comprehend.
A judge permitted Deja Coleman to attend the funeral of her 1-year-old son, whom she is charged with killing after he died from being left in a hot vehicle last month. (Gwinnett County Sheriff's Office)
Daniel Coleman, age 1, died in July after being left in a hot car for hours. His mother, Deja Coleman, now faces a second-degree murder charge.

Overview

  • On July 29, investigators say a 1-year-old was left inside Deja Coleman’s locked car in a Northside Gwinnett Hospital employee lot for about nine hours and the vehicle’s interior measured roughly 117°F when the child was found unresponsive.
  • Gwinnett County prosecutors charged Coleman with second-degree murder and second-degree child cruelty and she remains jailed without bond after waiving a preliminary hearing that sent the case to Superior Court.
  • A judge ruled Coleman could be driven to and from her son’s funeral on August 15 while remaining in custody and mortuary staff and her lawyer reported an earlier private visit in jail clothes and restraints.
  • Coleman’s defense says the death was an unintentional mistake caused by extreme sleep deprivation and a documented phenomenon called Forgotten Baby Syndrome, and experts have described how stress can produce catastrophic memory failures.
  • Her two older children were placed with their daycare administrator and the case highlights wider questions about prosecutorial choices and Georgia law because a second-degree murder conviction can carry a lengthy mandatory sentence.