Gay Man Arrested After Baby Girl He Wanted to Adopt With Partner Dies in Hot Car; Another Child Was Left Inside But Escaped
A gay Wichita, Kansas man who was trying to adopt a 10-month-old girl with his partner was arrested on suspicion of aggravated child endangerment Thursday when the infant died after he forgot that he had left her and another child inside his car in scorching 90-degree weather.
Wichita police and the state are now trying to piece together why this tragedy happened and why the men didn't realize the children were missing for so long.
An NBC News report says Seth Michael Jackson, 29, and his 26-year-old partner Payton Schroeder were in the process of adopting the 10-month-old girl known as Anna, and Kadylak, when the girl died helplessly in the car.
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According to The Wichita Eagle , the other child that was left in the car escaped before things got dangerous. The men have two adopted children and were caring for a total of six children, ranging in age from 10 months to 18 years.
Lt. Todd Ojile explained to the Eagle that an emergency dispatcher received a call at about 6:41 p.m. Thursday alerting them of the incident. Investigators say that the baby girl had been left strapped in a car seat in the back of a four-door sedan Dodge Charger with tinted windows for approximately 2 ½ hours.
Jackson reportedly picked up the child from a babysitter and for reasons that are still unclear, forgot that the baby and the other child were left inside the car. Schroeder was under the impression that the children were downstairs in the home.
Jackson only realized that the baby was missing after something on the TV "keyed on him." He and his partner ran outside and discovered the baby dead.
Investigators hope to present their findings to prosecutors early next week, who will decide whether to file charges against Jackson according to the Eagle.
Brad Ketcham, a National Weather Service meteorologist, said the infant was in the car "probably right around the hottest time of the day" Thursday.
The infant's maternal grandmother is now demanding answers as she cannot understand how the baby could have been left alone for more than two hours.
"They tell you when your kids go into the system they're going to be safe, nothing's going to happen. They promise you," Cindy Poe, the dead infant's maternal grandmother told the Eagle. "They're supposed to take care of your kids. And you never ever expect this to happen."
Phyllis Gilmore, secretary of the state Department for Children and Families in Kansas, said a contractor known as TFI had placed the infant with the two men and an inspection of all foster homes associated with TFI is currently being conducted. TFI's contract with the state was not renewed in July 2013, but it was still allowed to sponsor state-licensed foster homes.
Gilmore said that relationship has now been suspended pending the investigation.
"I am absolutely devastated by this child's death that should have been prevented," Gilmore said in a news release.
