NCPD Arrests Woman for Leaving Children Unattended in Car

North Charleston Police Department officers arrested 30-year-old Obdulia Lopez on Wednesday after she left her two young children, aged one and three, unattended in a vehicle for 35 minutes with the windows rolled up. The incident occurred around 12:40 p.m. outside a store on Rivers Avenue.

When officers arrived, the vehicle was already leaving the parking lot. Upon stopping it, they found four children under the age of three in the back seat, none of whom were restrained with seat belts or car seats.

Surveillance footage confirmed Lopez had been inside the store for over half an hour. The outside temperature was 80°F at the time.

The Department of Social Services (DSS) released the children to a family member. Lopez was charged with two counts of child endangerment and booked into the Al Cannon Detention Center.

NCPD officials are reminding the public that leaving children unattended in vehicles, especially in warm weather, can have dangerous—and even deadly—consequences.