An alarm sounded several times Tuesday as a 15-month-old boy squirmed in a sweltering car at the parking lot of a Chattanooga business, police said.
The child, Timothy Reid, was found dead after being in the car for almost seven hours, and his father, Robert Reid, has been charged with criminally negligent homicide and aggravated child abuse and neglect.
Police said the 2002 BMW M5 was equipped with an alarm that sounds if motion is detected inside the vehicle. Police said Robert Reid was aware the alarm was going off and he reset it several times and disabled it from his desk because he looked out and could not see anyone around his vehicle.
Reid made $15,000 in bonds set by Magistrate James Anderson.
He is due to appear before General Sessions Court Judge Clarence Shattuck on May 23 at 8:30 a.m.
Lt. Tim Carroll said Chattanooga Police, EMS, and Chattanooga Fire Department responded to 6005 Century Oaks Dr. at the Unishippers business on an unresponsive infant. The business is owned by Mr. Reid and his wife.
On police arrival, Mrs. Reid was attempting CPR. Chattanooga Fire Department Engine 6 took over CPR until EMS arrived and confirmed the infant dead at the scene.
Lt. Carroll said the investigation revealed that Mr. Reid left his home with the infant and his three other children (girls ages 10 and 6, and a son age 12) to drop them off at a local school and daycare. The three older children were dropped off at the school.
He said Mr. Reid apparently failed to take Timothy Reid (in a car seat behind Mr. Reid) into the daycare center and drove to his business, arriving at approximately 8:30 a.m.
At approximately 3:20 p.m. Mr. Reid went to his car to go pick up the three children from school. He found his toddler son unresponsive and took him inside his business.
Chattanooga Fire Department First responders did a thermal imaging reading of the BMW and found the inside of the car was 142 degrees.
The case is being investigated by the Homicide Unit, Child Abuse Unit, and Child Protective Services.