A Phoenix woman was arrested on suspicion of child abuse after her 3-year-old daughter was found unconscious in her car and died on Sunday afternoon, according to authorities.
Police officers went to an apartment complex where a woman reported that her child was missing, police spokesperson Sgt. Mercedes Fortune said. Officers arrived at 4:38 p.m.
The woman, 23-year-old Tianna Jones, told the officers that she could not find her toddler, Delilah. After police began searching the area, Jones told them that her car keys were also missing.
Delilah was found unresponsive in the vehicle parked in the complex's lot, Fortune said. The 3-year-old was taken to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Investigators on the scene later learned that Jones had fallen asleep during the day after partying and using drugs the night before, according to a probable cause report filed in court by Phoenix police.
Jones also told investigators that her daughter had escaped multiple times out the front door before due to a faulty latch, the report stated. Surveillance footage showed that Delilah walked out of the apartment and found her way into the car more than four hours before Jones exited the apartment looking for her and called 911, according to the report.
Delilah had previously been removed from Jones' custody for neglect, the report stated.
Jones was arrested on suspicion of child abuse, a felony charge.
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