A Texas woman who was arrested last week has been charged with murdering her 15-month-old child, who died in a hot car days earlier.

Frisco police have reported that Vanessa Esquivel, aged 27, deliberately left her child inside a car on August 16. According to KDFI, Esquivel was apprehended on August 20 after leaving the toddler in the vehicle for over two hours while she was at work.

The car reportedly lacked air conditioning. It was 95 degrees in Frisco on the day Esquivel’s baby died.

The Dallas Express noted that Frisco police were alerted by Plano police following the hospitalization of Esquivel’s child. Following their investigation, Frisco authorities established that they had sufficient evidence to charge Esquivel with murder.

Esquivel’s bond was set at $250,000.

The 15-month-old was the 23rd child to die in a hot car this year. According to No Heat Stroke, 39 children died in hot cars in 2024.

[Feature Photo: Frisco police]