2-year-old's death prompts police warning about car dangers
Witnesses say the girl died after spending time inside a hot car
Updated: 5:46 PM EDT Jun 11, 2018
Todd Dykes
Investigative Reporter
WEBVTT RIDGE ARE WAITING TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT HOW THE LITTLE GIRL DIED BEFORE DECIDING HOW TO PROCEED. DETECTIVES HOPE THAT MEDICAL EXAM IS DONE BY THE END OF THE WEEK. WHATEVER THE OUTCOME, THIS IS A CASE THAT'S ALREADY CAUSED TREMENDOUS HEARTACHE. BEATRICE CHAPPELL SAYS THIS 2-YEAR-OLD GIRL DIED IN A CAR SATURDAY AFTERNOON IN A TRAILER PARK IN CRITTENDEN. >> IT'S SO HARD. IT'S VERY HARD. >> WE JUST DON'T KNOW HOW SHE WIND UP IN THAT CAR. I NEVER HEARD NO CAR DOOR. TODD: THE CIRCUMSTANCES THAT LED UP TO THIS LITTLE GIRL'S DEATH REMAIN UNDER INVESTIGATION. AFTER SAYING HER FRIEND'S DAUGHTER WAS DEEPLY LOVED, CHAPPELL SAID THE GIRL HAD A KNACK FOR NOT STAYING STILL. >> WE TRIED TO WATCH HER CLOSE AS POSSIBLE. BUT SOMETIMES YOU THINK SHE'S IN THE OTHER ROOM AND SHE'S NOT THERE. I BELIEVE SHE WENT OUT, SLIPPED OUT THE BACK DOOR ON US AND SOME WAY, SOME HOW SHE GOT IN THE CAR. WE'RE NOT FOR SURE. TODD: ERIC DAVIS LIVES ACROSS THE STREET. >> EVERY TIME I CLOSE MY EYES I SEE HER FACE. TODD: HE RACED TO THE CAR TO HELP THE LITTLE GIRL BUT QUICKLY REALIZED THERE WAS LITTLE THAT COULD BE DONE TO SAVE HER. >> I THOUGHT I'D TRY TO HELP SAVE HER; TRIED TO DO ANYTHING, BUT I COULDN'T. I KNEW SHE WAS GONE, BUT I THOUGHT IN MY I WOULD AT LEAST TRY. TODD: DAVIS AND HIS FIANCE HAVE BEEN HOLDING THEIR KIDS CLOSE, AFTER WITNESSING SUCH AN UNTHINKABLE TRAGEDY. NEITHER CAN UNDERSTAND HOW A LITTLE GIRL ENDED UP INSIDE A HOT CAR. >> I JUST WANT TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENED. I WANT THE TRUTH TO COME OUT, TO SEE, YOU KNOW, HOW LONG SHE WAS IN THAT CAR. THAT'S WHAT I REALLY WOULD LIKE TO KNOW. TODD: AGAIN, KENTUCKY STATE POLICE ARE WAITING FOR THE OFFICIAL CAUSE OF DEATH BEFORE DECIDING IF ANYONE WILL FACE CRIMINAL CHARGES. IN DRY RIDGE, TODD DYKES, WLWT NEWS
Beatrice Chappell said a 2-year-old girl died in a car Saturday afternoon in Crittenden outside the trailer she calls home."It's so hard," Chappell said, crying. "It's very hard ... We just don't know how she wound up in that car. I never heard (a) car door."The circumstances that led up to the little girl's death remain under investigation by Kentucky State Police detectives.After saying her friend's daughter was deeply loved, Chappell said the girl had a knack for not staying still."We tried to watch her close as possible," Chappell said. "But sometimes, you think she's in the other room, and she's not there."She added, "I believe she went out, slipped out the back door on us and some way, somehow she got in the car. We're not for sure."Eric Davis lives across from Chappell's trailer on Big Bear Circle."Every time I close my eyes, I see her face," Davis said.Davis said he raced to the car to help the little girl, but quickly realized there was little that could be done to save her."I thought I'd try to help save her," Davis said. "I tried to do anything, but I couldn't. I knew she was gone, but I thought in my head, I would at least try."Davis and his fiancee have been holding their kids close after witnessing such an unthinkable tragedy.Neither can understand how a little girl ended up inside a hot car. "I just want to know what happened," Davis said. "I want the truth to come out, to see, you know, how long she was in that car. That's what I really would like to know."Detectives are waiting for the official cause of death before deciding if criminal charges are warranted.While not commenting on exactly what happened, state police officials are using the incident to remind parents to put their cellphones or purses in the backseat of the vehicle with their kids to make sure no one gets left behind.
CRITTENDEN, Ky. —
Beatrice Chappell said a 2-year-old girl died in a car Saturday afternoon in Crittenden outside the trailer she calls home.
"It's so hard," Chappell said, crying. "It's very hard ... We just don't know how she wound up in that car. I never heard (a) car door."
Police: 2-year-old girl dies after being found unresponsive in Crittenden vehicle
The circumstances that led up to the little girl's death remain under investigation by Kentucky State Police detectives.
After saying her friend's daughter was deeply loved, Chappell said the girl had a knack for not staying still.
"We tried to watch her close as possible," Chappell said. "But sometimes, you think she's in the other room, and she's not there."
She added, "I believe she went out, slipped out the back door on us and some way, somehow she got in the car. We're not for sure."
Eric Davis lives across from Chappell's trailer on Big Bear Circle.
"Every time I close my eyes, I see her face," Davis said.
Davis said he raced to the car to help the little girl, but quickly realized there was little that could be done to save her.
"I thought I'd try to help save her," Davis said. "I tried to do anything, but I couldn't. I knew she was gone, but I thought in my head, I would at least try."
Davis and his fiancee have been holding their kids close after witnessing such an unthinkable tragedy.
Neither can understand how a little girl ended up inside a hot car.
"I just want to know what happened," Davis said. "I want the truth to come out, to see, you know, how long she was in that car. That's what I really would like to know."
Detectives are waiting for the official cause of death before deciding if criminal charges are warranted.
While not commenting on exactly what happened, state police officials are using the incident to remind parents to put their cellphones or purses in the backseat of the vehicle with their kids to make sure no one gets left behind.