David Towner: Man who forgot granddaughter, 2, inside hot rental car in 80-degree heat charged with child neglect
Update: According to the Volusia County sheriff's office, David Towner appeared remorseful and cooperated with deputies when contacted following the incident. He was charged with one count of child neglect and taken to Volusia County Branch Jail.
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VOLUSIA COUNTY, FLORIDA: A 62-year-old man was arrested after he left his toddler granddaughter inside a rental car that he returned to the Florida airport. The child was rescued by the employees of the Hertz rental car about 45 minutes after stumbling upon David Towner's returned car that he left in the unshaded parking lot on Monday, October 11.
Towner was on babysitting duty when he headed to Daytona Beach International Airport at 5 pm to return his Hertz rental car. Employee Steven Stivers found the two-year-old girl in the backseat of a 2019 Chevrolet Equinox while moving returned vehicles, according to the authorities. Towner was arrested and charged with child neglect after leaving his granddaughter in the unshaded car in 80-degree weather.
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Volusia Sheriff deputies arrived shortly around 6 pm and found the toddler had dried tear stained on her red face. Employee Dahronda Patterson could be seen in the bodycam footage holding the child, she informed police that Steven found the toddler in the back of a 2019 Chevrolet Equinox while transporting returned vehicles. "He immediately notified Patterson who removed her from the vehicle and brought her into the main terminal," the arrest affidavit read. "Deputy Durney placed his hands on (her) forehead and observed her skin was hot to the touch, similar to a fever. (She) appeared to be breathing normally and no obvious signs of trauma were observed." The bodycam footage also showed the moment emergency services checked the two-year-old's vitals.
(Volusia County Sheriff's Office)
Officials were able to contact the toddler's mother after she frantically called the police after visiting her dad's home and noticed her daughter was missing. The mother told the police that she had arrived at the airport around 5.30 pm to pick up her dad Towner after he dropped off the rental car. Towner told his daughter that the toddler was back at his home with his roommate. When the mother arrived at the residence she immediately noticed her daughter wasn't there, the arrest affidavit read. The mother searched for her daughter at home and was told by the roommate that Towner had placed the child in the backseat of the car before going to the airport.
The toddler was later reunited with her mother and Towner was arrested for child neglect after leaving his granddaughter in the unshaded car in 80-degree weather. Police were originally informed that the car was rented by William Ford in Pennsylvania but were told by airport officials that Ford didn't have a flight reservation. It was unclear who Ford is. "Then a call came in from the child's mother, who had just learned her father had left her daughter in the rental car, not at his home, as he'd told her," The Volusia Sheriff Department wrote on Facebook. "(She) stated that she called 911 and was notified that (her daughter) was possibly at the airport."
Towner is believed to have accidentally left the toddler behind after additional footage from the Hertz car drop-off lane at the airport showed Towner leaving his vehicle and not turning back. The mother informed the police her dad has a drinking problem. While Towner did not appear to be drunk, police noted that he smelled of alcohol. However, Towner insisted he was sober and had no history of mental health issues. Nevertheless, police said Towner was "remorseful" and "cooperative" upon the investigation and his arrest.