Baby left inside hot car in Pinecrest dies

A 1-year-old child left inside a car in front of a Pinecrest home died in the hospital Tuesday.

Miami-Dade police said Samuel J. Schnall, who turned 1 on Jan. 20, died in the afternoon at Baptist Hospital in Kendall. Samuel was rushed there after he was found inside a blue Toyota Camry parked in front of a home in the 7700 block of Southwest 124th Terrace around 3 p.m. Monday.

It was 82 degrees outside when Samuel was in the car. He had been left there for more than an hour.

Jennifer Capote, a Miami-Dade police spokeswoman, said on Monday a “family member” was watching the child and was “out and about.”

When that family member came home, he or she left the child in the car. Samuel did not live in the home, Capote said.

Miami-Dade police spokeswoman Robin Pinkard said Tuesday there are no plans to charge anyone involved “at this time.”

The Department of Children and Families opened a child-protective investigation on Monday, a spokesman said in a statement.

“We are devastated to hear that the child passed away today and will continue to investigate and assist the family in any way possible as they grieve this loss. The family has no prior involvement with the child welfare system,” according to Tuesday’s statement.

Last year, 39 children died nationwide after being left in a car. Florida is second only to Texas in the number of heat-related deaths related to being left in a car.

This story was originally published February 7, 2017 at 12:22 PM with the headline "Baby left inside hot car in Pinecrest dies."