Seven children were trapped in a car on May 14 in Maryland. Officers responded to a call made from a four year old inside the locked car only to find that six other children were in there as well.

It was discovered on scene that there was only one car seat for the eight children, whose ages ranged from two to four. The car’s owner was the mother of two of the children and was babysitting the other four at the time. When law enforcement came to the scene, the car was turned off with the windows rolled up. WJLA reported that the children inside were “scared” and “sweaty.”

The woman who owned the car showed up roughly 10 minutes after officers arrived. She had been browsing in the shopping center nearby for 30 minutes before she returned to the car.

Officers on scene charged the woman with confinement of children in a motor vehicle. Additional charges may be added. The Charles County Sheriff’s Office released a statement to remind caregivers to take their children with them in the increasingly hot weather.

What is left to be understood is why a woman would abandon her own children and children she is babysitting to go shopping. I understand that children are a pain to watch, especially toddlers. But why would you have two children if you didn’t want to take care of them the way they should properly be treated? And why would you take on other people’s children, only to knowingly abandon them in a hot car?

If you didn’t want children, or have the time or money to take proper care of them, please refrain from having them. It is not fair to bring a child into this world only to neglect them by leaving them in a car with the windows rolled up on a hot day.

If you choose not to get another responsible adult to watch your children, then you should bring them with you wherever you go. It’s simply common sense. 

Children, and all people, need a proper environment to survive in with airflow and reasonable temperatures. If you would be uncomfortable in that hot car, it is more than likely that toddlers would not be comfortable there either.