WINTER HAVEN, Fla. — A 74-year-old grandmother has been arrested and charged with aggravated manslaughter following the hot car death of her 17-month-old granddaughter earlier this year, authorities said Wednesday.
Karen Denise Benyard was taken into custody on August 26, 2026, and booked into the Polk County Jail on a first-degree felony charge of Aggravated Manslaughter of a Child.
According to Winter Haven police, the incident occurred on March 31, 2026. Earlier that afternoon, Benyard picked up the toddler and a relative from Lake Wales, where the family member had been babysitting while the child’s mother worked in Winter Haven.
The relative secured the girl in a car seat in the back before sitting in the front passenger seat.
The child fell asleep during the drive to drop off the relative at work in Winter Haven. Benyard then drove to her home on Avenue N Southwest, parking at approximately 2:07 p.m. and heading inside without removing the child from the vehicle.
Benyard took a nap and woke up around 3:46 p.m. to pick up the child’s mother from work. Upon returning to the car, she discovered the toddler unresponsive in the back seat.
Winter Haven Police and Fire personnel arrived on scene and administered life-saving measures. The child was rushed to Winter Haven Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 4:33 p.m. Benyard was hospitalized for medical treatment due to severe grief and was discharged several days later.
Detectives launched an investigation to verify the timeline, reviewing Benyard’s cellphone data and Ring camera footage along her route. Investigators reported no discrepancies in her account. A toxicology report from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement returned on May 22 showed no presence of alcohol or narcotics in Benyard’s system.
An autopsy completed on July 21 determined the child had no natural diseases or physical trauma, ruling the cause of death as hyperthermia caused by environmental exposure.
“This is an absolutely heartbreaking case where there is no closure for the family,” Winter Haven Police Chief Vance Monroe Jr. said in a statement. “Our entire department shares the heavy grief of this devastating tragedy.”
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