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Police: Boy left in car at Port St. Lucie Walmart, woman charged with child neglect

Posted at 11:48 AM, May 11, 2017
and last updated 2017-05-11 19:16:29-04

A woman who said she that she forgot she left a child in her car while she shopped is facing child neglect charges, according to Port St. Lucie police.

29-year-old Yessina Torres picked up the 23-month-old boy from a daycare in Stuart and then stopped at a Walmart in Port St. Lucie for pizza and laundry detergent, police said.

During the 24 minutes she was inside the store a woman discovered the child crying and said that she took him from the unlocked vehicle and placed him in her car so he could cool off while she called the police.

Officers said that they later learned Torres had driven the child without a car seat. Police said Torres told them that picking the child up was a "last-minute" arrangement and she didn't have a car seat.

Police said the toddler's parents, who were called to the scene, said Torres picks the child up every day from daycare.

Police arrested Torres and charged her with child neglect.