I’m Rocky Brancato, founder of The Brancato Law Firm, P.A., a Tampa criminal defense firm. I’m a former Major Crimes Unit attorney who handled homicide, sex crimes, and child abuse cases, and I have tried more than 150 jury trials to verdict. Today our attorneys defend parents, grandparents, babysitters, and child care workers investigated after a child is found in a vehicle in Hillsborough, Pinellas, and Pasco Counties.

What does Florida law say about leaving a child in a car?

Florida law makes it illegal for a parent, legal guardian, or anyone else responsible for a child younger than 6 to leave that child unattended or unsupervised in a motor vehicle for more than 15 minutes. The same statute, section 316.6135, also prohibits leaving the child for any length of time if the engine is running, the child’s health is in danger, or the child appears to be in distress.

The statute reaches more people than most families expect. “Other person responsible for a child” covers babysitters, grandparents, nannies, daycare drivers, and family friends who agreed to watch the child for the day.

Section 316.6135 also gives police specific powers. An officer who sees a child left in violation of the statute may use whatever means are reasonably necessary to remove the child, including breaking a window. If the officer cannot locate a parent, guardian, or other responsible person, the statute requires that the child be placed in the custody of the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) under chapter 39, the dependency chapter. Our firm tells clients to expect that a DCF investigation and a criminal investigation can run at the same time.

Can you be charged if the child was not hurt?

Yes. A child who is unharmed can still lead to a criminal charge in Florida. Leaving a child under 6 alone in a car for more than 15 minutes is a second-degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to 60 days in jail and a $500 fine under sections 775.082 and 775.083. Leaving the child for any period with the engine running, or while the child is in danger or distress, is a noncriminal traffic infraction with a fine of $50 to $500.

Prosecutors sometimes charge more than the traffic statute. Florida’s child neglect law, section 827.03, makes it a third-degree felony to willfully or by culpable negligence fail to provide a child the supervision necessary for the child’s health, even when no injury occurs. Neglect can rest on a single incident that could reasonably be expected to cause serious injury or a substantial risk of death.

A neglect charge built on a parked car has limits. In State v. Sammons, 889 So. 2d 857 (Fla. 4th DCA 2004), a Palm Beach County mother went into a bar for less than two hours while her 5-year-old slept in her truck, which was parked out front with the windows open. The appeals court upheld dismissal of the felony neglect charge because the State offered no facts showing she had placed herself where she could not keep the child in view. The lesson our attorneys draw from Sammons is that the State must prove an actual failure of supervision, and the specific facts of where the car was, how hot it was, and how long the child was alone decide the case.

What charges can follow if a child is hurt or dies?

When a child is seriously injured or dies, Florida prosecutors have several charges available, and they often file more than one. The table below lists the charges our firm most often sees in hot car investigations, with the maximum penalties set by Florida law.

The most serious charge, aggravated manslaughter of a child under section 782.07(3), applies when a person causes the death of anyone under 18 through culpable negligence. Florida courts define culpable negligence as much more than ordinary carelessness: conduct showing a reckless disregard of human life, or an entire want of care that suggests indifference to the consequences. Our article on the difference between second-degree murder and manslaughter in Florida explains how manslaughter fits into Florida’s homicide statutes.

Actual sentences turn on the Criminal Punishment Code scoresheet, the charges that are proven, and any grounds for a downward departure, which is a sentence below the scoresheet minimum. If your family is facing one of these charges, our Tampa child abuse attorney page describes how our firm handles child neglect and child death investigations.

Is forgetting a child in a car a crime in Florida?

Forgetting a child, by itself, is not enough for a conviction under Florida’s unattended-child statute. On September 30, 2026, the First District Court of Appeal held in Jewell v. State, No. 1D2024-3279 (Fla. 1st DCA Sept. 30, 2026), that section 316.6135 requires proof that the caregiver knowingly left the child in the vehicle. Forgetting can still lead to other charges, as explained below.

The facts in Jewell are simple and tragic. Rhonda Jewell, a nanny in Macclenny in Baker County and a longtime friend of the child’s family, was caring for a 10-month-old girl on July 19, 2023. The baby was strapped into her car seat in the back of Jewell’s SUV, and Jewell forgot she was there. The baby remained in the vehicle for about five hours in the July heat and died of hyperthermia.

The State charged Jewell with three crimes: aggravated manslaughter of a child by culpable negligence, third-degree felony murder under section 782.04(4), and leaving a child unattended in a vehicle causing great bodily harm. The jury acquitted her of manslaughter. It convicted her of the other two counts after the trial judge ruled that the unattended-child statute required no proof of knowledge, and she was sentenced to 17 years in prison.

The appeals court reversed both convictions on two grounds:

1. Knowledge is an element. The court read the word “leave” in section 316.6135 to require that the initial act of leaving the child be done “knowingly, consciously, or with volition.” Because the jury instruction left out that element, and Jewell’s only defense was that she forgot, she was denied a fair trial.
2. Felony murder cannot rest on a no-intent crime. The court held that third-degree felony murder cannot be based on an unenumerated predicate felony that requires no proof of intent. It called the felony murder charge a “fallacy” and reversed it outright.

The court ordered a new trial only on the unattended-child count, before a properly instructed jury. Chief Judge Osterhaus dissented on that count, arguing the Legislature wrote section 316.6135 as a strict liability offense. Because of that split, the State may seek rehearing or further review, so the decision could still change.

Jewell matters in Tampa Bay even though it came from a North Florida court. Under Pardo v. State, 596 So. 2d 665 (Fla. 1992), a decision of any Florida district court of appeal binds every trial court in the state unless another district court disagrees. Trial courts in Hillsborough, Pinellas, and Pasco Counties, which sit in the Second District, must follow Jewell unless and until the Second District rules otherwise.

The second half of the story is the warning. Jewell itself says that criminal negligence remains “an avenue” to prosecute a forgetful caregiver. The Second District has already upheld a jury’s culpable negligence verdict in a distraction case. In State v. Brooks, 17 So. 3d 1261 (Fla. 2d DCA 2009), a Hillsborough County case, a mother put her 9-month-old and 2-year-old in a running bathtub, stepped out intending to return within a minute, and lost track of time talking with her aunt. Her infant son drowned. The jury acquitted her of aggravated manslaughter but convicted her of child neglect by culpable negligence, and the Second District reinstated that conviction after the trial judge threw it out. In our district, a lapse of attention can still reach a jury as culpable negligence, and that is where these cases are now won or lost.

Why do loving parents forget children in cars?

Most hot car deaths happen because a caregiver forgot the child. From 1998 through 2025, the national database at NoHeatstroke.org recorded 1,041 pediatric vehicular heatstroke deaths in the United States. Of those, 52.9 percent involved a child forgotten by a caregiver, 23.8 percent involved a child who got into a vehicle alone, and 21.9 percent involved a child knowingly left in the vehicle.

Florida carries a heavy share of that toll. From 1998 through 2025, Florida recorded 115 child hot car deaths, second only to Texas, according to NoHeatstroke.org’s state data. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that a child’s body temperature rises three to five times faster than an adult’s, which is why a few hours in a parked car can be fatal.

Memory science explains how this happens to attentive parents. In a 2019 peer-reviewed article in Medicine, Science and the Law, University of South Florida psychology professor David Diamond described these deaths as failures of prospective memory, the brain’s system for remembering to do something later. According to Diamond’s research, the brain’s habit system can take over during a familiar drive and override a plan to stop at daycare, especially when the day’s plan differs from the usual routine, or under stress, sleep deprivation, distraction, or the absence of cues such as a quiet child or a diaper bag out of sight. USF’s summary of the research notes that the brain can even create a false memory that the child was dropped off as planned.

This research matters in court. After Jewell, the central question in many hot car prosecutions is what the caregiver knew and how the lapse happened, and our firm works with qualified experts to answer it. Our article on why expert witnesses matter in major crimes cases explains how we use them.

What mental state must the State prove for each charge?

Each hot car charge requires the State to prove a different mental state, and that difference often decides the case. Our attorneys build the defense around the mental state the State has charged, and the table below compares them.

How do our attorneys defend hot car cases?

Our attorneys defend hot car cases by testing every element the State must prove, starting with what the caregiver knew. Each case is different, but these are the defenses The Brancato Law Firm evaluates first:

1. No knowing act. Under Jewell, the State must prove the caregiver knowingly left the child. Phone records, vehicle data, daycare records, and a change in the day’s routine can show a true memory lapse.
2. No culpable negligence. A memory failure is different from a reckless disregard for human life. The Jewell jury acquitted on aggravated manslaughter, and expert testimony on prospective memory can help a jury see why.
3. Supervision was present. Under Sammons, a parent who kept the vehicle in view, with the windows open and the child comfortable, may not have committed neglect at all. Where the facts are undisputed, a sworn motion to dismiss can end a neglect case before trial.
4. The statutory elements are missing. Section 316.6135 applies only to children younger than 6, only to a person responsible for the child, and, under subsection (1)(a), only after 15 minutes.
5. Cause and timeline of death. A forensic pathologist can examine the cause of death and the timeline the State relies on. Our complete guide to homicide charges in Florida explains each homicide charge Florida prosecutors file.
6. Mitigation and sentencing. Where a conviction is possible, a caregiver’s history, grief, and lack of any prior record support arguments for a lesser charge or a downward departure.

What happens after a hot car incident in Hillsborough County?

After a child is found in a vehicle, law enforcement opens a death or injury investigation immediately, and charging decisions can come weeks or months later. In unincorporated Hillsborough County, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office investigates. Tampa Police handle incidents inside city limits, and the State Attorney’s Office for the 13th Judicial Circuit decides what charges to file.

A recent local case shows the timeline. On June 20, 2026, a father in Riverview found his 3-year-old inside a parked vehicle at the family’s home, and the child was pronounced dead at the hospital. Two days later, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office press release stated that no charges had been filed and the investigation remained active. Families in that position are often interviewed at the scene, in shock, before anyone has spoken with a lawyer.

Our firm advises any caregiver involved in a hot car incident to take these steps:

• Do not give a recorded or written statement to detectives or DCF investigators before speaking with a criminal defense attorney.
• Preserve phone records, texts, calendar entries, work schedules, and daycare drop-off records from that day.
• Write down the day’s routine and any change to it, while your memory is fresh, and share it only with your attorney.
• Expect a parallel DCF investigation that can affect custody of other children in the home.

Our article on Tampa child neglect defense explains Florida’s child neglect charges in more detail.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it illegal to leave a child in the car for 5 minutes in Florida?

It can be. The 15-minute rule in section 316.6135 does not apply if the engine is running, the child’s health is in danger, or the child appears to be in distress, and leaving a child under those conditions for any period is a noncriminal traffic infraction. If the child is seriously harmed, even a short absence can support a felony charge.

At what age can a child be left alone in a car in Florida?

Section 316.6135 applies only to children younger than 6, so it sets no rule for older children. Florida’s child neglect statute still applies to a child of any age if leaving the child alone could reasonably be expected to cause serious injury or a substantial risk of death. Whether neglect applies depends on facts such as the child’s age, the temperature, and how long the child was alone.

Can a babysitter or grandparent be charged for leaving a child in a hot car?

Yes. Section 316.6135 applies to any “other person responsible for a child,” and Florida’s neglect statute applies to any caregiver. Jewell v. State itself involved a nanny caring for a family friend’s baby. The Brancato Law Firm represents babysitters, grandparents, and child care workers as well as parents.

Can someone break a car window to save a child or a pet in Florida?

Yes, if the rescuer follows the steps in section 768.139. The rescuer must determine the vehicle is locked, reasonably believe the person or domestic animal is in imminent danger, call 911 or law enforcement before or immediately after entering, use no more force than necessary, and stay with the person or animal until first responders arrive. A rescuer who meets those conditions is immune from civil liability for damage to the vehicle.

Is leaving a dog in a hot car a crime in Florida?

Yes, it can be. Leaving a pet in a hot car can be charged as animal cruelty under section 828.12, a first-degree misdemeanor with a fine of up to $5,000, or as aggravated animal cruelty, a third-degree felony, if the animal suffers a cruel death or excessive pain. Prosecutors may also use section 828.13, which covers confining an animal without sufficient food, water, or change of air.

Will DCF take my children after a hot car incident?

It is possible. Section 316.6135 requires police to place the child with DCF if they cannot locate a parent or other responsible person, and a child injury or death in a vehicle typically triggers a child protective investigation that can involve other children in the home. Our attorneys coordinate the criminal defense with the dependency case so that statements made in one do not damage the other.

Should I talk to police after my child was found in a hot car?

No, not before speaking with a criminal defense attorney. Under Jewell, what you knew and when you knew it can decide whether a crime occurred, and early statements given in shock are often the State’s most important evidence. Call The Brancato Law Firm at (813) 727-7159 before any interview with detectives or DCF.

Talk to a Tampa Defense Attorney About a Hot Car Investigation

For more about our defense strategies, visit our Child Abuse page.

If you or someone in your family is under investigation after a child was found in a vehicle, the attorneys of The Brancato Law Firm, P.A., founded by Tampa Criminal Defense Attorney Rocky Brancato, can help. Call (813) 727-7159 now, before you speak with detectives or DCF, because the first interviews in these cases often happen within hours.

The Brancato Law Firm, P.A.
620 E. Twiggs Street, Suite 205, Tampa, FL 33602
(813) 727-7159
Serving Hillsborough, Pinellas, and Pasco Counties

The Brancato Law Firm, P.A. is a Tampa-based criminal defense practice. We are not affiliated with any other Brancato-named law firms.