Father probed in death of toddler left in car

A Lawrenceville man is under investigation for leaving his 15-month-old daughter in a hot car May 8. The child died five days later.

James Williams told police he had picked his child up from a relative's house and forgot she was asleep in the backseat, Lawrenceville police Maj. Paul King said.

The dad went inside and settled in front of the television, police said.

Brianna Williams was left in the car for about three hours and was listless when her grandmother found her at about 7 p.m., King said.

"It seems like a very terrible accident," the major said. "The father's been very distraught.

"We're going to discuss the circumstances with the district attorney," King said Thursday.

The father, a Roswell convenience store clerk, had recently switched shifts at work and usually wasn't the one picking up his daughter in the afternoon, police said.

Temperatures that day were in the low to mid-80s and would have been considerably hotter inside the car. The windows were rolled up and aren't tinted, King said.

Williams and his mother rushed Brianna to Gwinnett Medical Center in Lawrenceville. The child, in critical condition, was flown to Children's Healthcare of Atlanta at Scottish Rite. She remained in intensive care until her death Tuesday.

Williams also has custody of his 7-year-old son from a previous marriage. The boy remains in the home, King said.