A woman from Charlotte, North Carolina has been accused of involuntary manslaughter in connection with the death of her 8-year-old daughter, who was reportedly left unattended in a car during hot weather conditions.
According to official reports, on the evening of June 26, 2024, law enforcement officers from the Freedom Division responded to a medical assistance call in the 4100 block of Wilkinson Boulevard. Upon arrival, they discovered the young girl in critical condition inside a vehicle. Despite being rushed to a nearby hospital, the child succumbed to her condition.
Subsequent investigations revealed that the child had been left unattended in a hot vehicle, leading to a medical emergency. The mother, identified as 36-year-old Ashlee Stallings, was subsequently taken into custody and charged with Involuntary Manslaughter and Child Abuse by Willful Act Causing Serious Injury.
According to the arrest affidavit, Stallings informed law enforcement that she had left the car’s air conditioning running, but her daughter might have turned it off due to feeling cold. The affidavit states that Stallings had last communicated with her 8-year-old daughter via text message an hour and a half prior to her return to the vehicle.
Upon returning, Stallings found her unresponsive daughter lying on the backseat floorboard. She reportedly used a hammer to break the car’s back window to reach her daughter. Stallings then started driving towards a hospital but stopped for assistance at a nearby establishment, where an individual called 911 to report the medical emergency.
Stallings admitted to law enforcement that she should not have left her child in the car, acknowledging the outside temperature of 94 degrees Fahrenheit (34.4 degrees Celsius), as documented in the affidavit.
“The investigation into this case is active and ongoing,” the department said, asking anyone with information to get in touch. “As additional information develops, it will be released by the CMPD’s Public Affairs Office.”
Stallings is currently detained at the Mecklenburg County Jail with a secured bond set at $250,000 and her next court hearing is set for July 17.
