On April 1, 2009, Michigan will be on a list of states that prohibit leaving a child unattended in a vehicle.

Michigan Compiled Law 750.135a reads as follows:

(1) A person who is responsible for the care or welfare of a child shall not leave that child unattended in a vehicle for a period of time that poses an unreasonable risk of harm or injury to the child or under circumstances that pose an unreasonable risk of harm or injury to the child.

(2) A person who violates this section is guilty of a crime as follows:

(a) Except as otherwise provided in subdivisions (b) to (d), the person is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more than 93 days or a fine of not more than $500.00, or both.

(b) If the violation results in physical harm other than serious physical harm to the child, the person is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more than 1 year or a fine of not more than $1,000.00, or both.

(c) If the violation results in serious physical harm to the child, the person is guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than 10 years or a fine of not more than $5,000.00, or both.

(d) If the violation results in the death of the child, the person is guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment for not more than 15 years or a fine of not more than $10,000.00, or both.

(3) As used in this section:

(a) "Child" means an individual less than 6 years of age.

(b) "Physical harm" and "serious physical harm" mean those terms as defined in section 136b.

(c) "Unattended" means alone or without the supervision of an individual 13 years of age or older who is not legally incapacitated.

(d) "Vehicle" means that term as defined in section 79 of the Michigan vehicle code, 1949 PA 300, MCL 257.79.

In the many cases, parents get out of the car and forget the child is back there.  In those cases, parents are distracted by a cell phone, work, or a change in routine.

A Green Oak Township toddler’s death, died from heat stroke in Michigan in the summer of 2008 and at that time, it was the sixth in the state since 1998.

Eighteen-month-old Alyssa Stouffer died July 16 after she was left in the pickup truck in the family's driveway for about five hours on a 90-degree day.  The baby died of hyperthermia.

Consider these descriptions from the death certificates of children that were published by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration:

• a 9 month old died after being 'left strapped in child safety seat in a sweltering minivan for two hours - misunderstanding between child's parents resulted in the child being left alone in the van; one parent believed infant was at home with other'
  
  
• a 6 month old 'baby died when accidentally left in hot car for 3 hrs, died when outside 90-degree temperatures rose to 130 degrees inside closed car, parents thought the other had carried the baby from the car to crib'
  
  
• a 34 month old 'toddler who recently learned how to open a car door apparently climbed inside family station wagon while parent and sibling were in house'
  
  
• a 23 month old died when a 'relative babysitting child, put child in car for trip to store, went back in house having forgotten something, was distracted by something on television, sat on couch to watch, fell asleep, woke up two hours later'
  
  
• a 2 year old died after a 'parent left child in car after returning home from errand - was left for more than an hour'
  
  
•  a 2 year old 'child apparently slipped away from parents and siblings, fell asleep atop blanket in unlocked car in driveway of home, oldest sibling found child 40 minutes later.’

Remember, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, a locked car sitting in the summer sun quickly turns into an oven, and temperatures can climb from 78 degrees to 100 degrees in just 3 minutes, to 125 degrees in 6-8 minutes.