A Georgia mother facing murder charges after her 1-year-old son died inside a hot car has been granted permission to attend the child’s funeral while remaining in law enforcement custody.
A Superior Court judge signed an order allowing 29-year-old Deja Coleman to be transported to and from the Atlanta burial service for her son, Daniel Coleman Jr., according to local reports.
Under the terms of the order, Coleman must remain in custody for the duration of the service.
“She’s not had the opportunity yet to cry for her child,” Coleman’s attorney, Tom Ford, told WSB-TV. “She’s going to have the opportunity Saturday.”
Ford noted that he requested special arrangements for the service itself. “I’ve asked that she be allowed to mourn inside the church with family, not cuffed,” he told the station. “I don’t know to what extent the officer is going to accommodate my request.”
Coleman was arrested on charges of second-degree murder and second-degree cruelty to children following the July 29 incident in Lawrenceville. According to the Lawrenceville Police Department, Coleman dropped two older children off at daycare that morning but forgot to bring her youngest child inside. She then drove to her job at Northside Gwinnett Hospital and clocked in at 6:55 a.m.
Authorities were called to the hospital’s employee parking lot around 3:50 p.m. after a worker noticed an unresponsive child inside the locked vehicle. Interior temperatures inside the car had reached roughly 117 degrees after the child remained inside for nearly nine hours. First responders attempted life-saving measures, but the 1-year-old was pronounced dead at the scene.
During an August 11 court hearing, Ford asked the court to dismiss the murder charge against Coleman, arguing the tragedy was an unintentional accident rather than a deliberate crime.
Coleman remains held without bond at the Gwinnett County Jail. Her formal bond hearing is scheduled for September 9.
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