Florida day care worker, 29, sentenced to 11 months in prison for child’s hot vehicle death

A Florida day care worker will spend 11 months behind bars following the death of a toddler in a hot van last summer.

Louvenia Johnson pleaded no contest to aggravated manslaughter of a child by culpable negligence, testifying that she was distracted while unloading the children. 

The Pensacola News-Journal reports McGee picked up three-year-old Jai’Nier Barnes at her Pensacola home last August and drove her with several other children to the In His Arms Christian Academy.

Louvenia Johnson (pictured) pleaded no contest to aggravated manslaughter of a child by culpable negligence

Last year, three-year-old Jai'Nier Barnes (pictured) was left in a hot van for four hours and later died while being treated at the hospital

Last year, three-year-old Jai’Nier Barnes (pictured) was left in a hot van for four hours and later died while being treated at the hospital

Judge Joel Boles also sentenced the 29-year-old to 10 years of probation Friday

Judge Joel Boles also sentenced the 29-year-old to 10 years of probation Friday

About four hours passed before another driver went outside at around 1pm and discovered the small girl. Employees tried CPR but the child died of hyperthermia at the hospital. 

Judge Joel Boles also sentenced the 29-year-old to 10 years of probation Friday.

The judge’s decision was a departure from the recommended minimum sentence of 13 years in prison as he said neither defendant had intended to harm Jai’Nier.

Earlier this week, a jury acquitted 27-year-old driver Cornel McGee in the incident.

Prosecutors in the case provided evidence that showed both Johnson and McGee signed state-mandated transportation logs saying Jai’Nier had been taken off the van, according to the News-Journal. 

McGee later told the newspaper that Johnson had picked up every child and stated their name, including Jai’Nier, while he checked off their name in the log. 

Earlier this week, a jury acquitted 27-year-old driver Cornel McGee (pictured) in the incident

 Prosecutors in the case provided evidence that showed both Johnson and Cornel McGee (L) signed state-mandated transportation logs saying Jai’Nier had been taken off the van

 Earlier this week, a jury acquitted 27-year-old driver McGee (pictured) in the incident

 Earlier this week, a jury acquitted 27-year-old driver Cornel McGee in the incident

McGee explained that Johnson must have gotten distracted after calling Jai’Nier’s name, and then the child fell asleep. 

Following Johnson’s hearing, prosecutors were at a loss on how to prevent such tragedies from reoccurring in the future.   

‘I don’t have an answer for what’s right,’ state prosecutor Trey Myers said during the hearing. 

‘It’s become an epidemic of some nature and something has to be done to grab their attention, judge,’ Myers added, referring to dozens of cases where caregivers were found responsible of having left children in hot vehicles over the years.

Defense attorney Paul Hamlin called the episode an isolated incident and argued that it was unfair that his client was being punished while McGee was allowed to go free. 

‘This is just a terrible tragedy and I don’t know how you rectify that,’ Hamlin said. 

Judge Boles said during the hearing that he understood that both defendants did not intend to harm Jai’Nier, but ultimately decided that they both had failed in their responsibility to protect her welfare while she was in their custody. 

‘Quite frankly they both failed at this, we had Mr McGee go to trial, he admitted he failed and the jury deliberated and made a determination that they thought he failed, his failure didn’t rise to the nature of criminal activity,’ the judge added. 

Johnson will be prohibited from working with children during her probation period. She will be required to turn herself in to custody on August 20 to begin her sentence.

The judge's decision was a departure from the recommended minimum sentence of 13 years in prison (Pictured: In His Arms Christian Academy)

The judge’s decision was a departure from the recommended minimum sentence of 13 years in prison (Pictured: In His Arms Christian Academy)

 

 

 

 



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