Posted by Phoenix DUI Attorney Nick Alcock:
If you have spent any amount of time outside in the past week you know the temperatures in the Valley are indeed getting hotter by the day. You would think most parents would know better than to leave their children in their cars in such extreme conditions. Unfortunately, basic sound judgment is not always the case.
Acting on a call from a hotel manager, police found Ramon Carrillo, 36, parked outside the Town Place Suites near Baseline Road and Priest Drive in Tempe at about 2 p.m. early Monday afternoon with children, ages 1 and 2, in his car. At the time police arrived, the outside temperature was 111 degrees but inside the car it was estimated to be between 115 to 120 degrees. The 1-year-old child was in a child seat in the rear of the vehicle and the 2-year-old was lying partially on Carrillo’s lap and the center armrest. Police said a handgun was later found under the front seat where the child was. Officers found Carrillo in the driver’s seat of the car, which was turned off with the keys in the ignition. Officers said the children appeared to be under duress due to the very hot interior temperature of the car. The front two windows were down and the back windows were halfway down. The children were rushed to a hospital for evaluation and are expected to be OK.
After police smelled the suspect reeking of alcohol and noticed watery and bloodshot eye, Carrillo, reportedly admitted to drinking one beer, performed poorly on a series of field sobriety tests and a preliminary breath test showed a blood alcohol content of .212. Carrillo was taken to the Tempe City Jail where breath tests returned a BAC of .164 and .162 more than twice the legal limit – and, since the keys were still in the ignition, he was arrested on suspicion of child abuse and aggravated DUI.
Carrillo’s bond was set at $8,000. It has not been determined whether he has hired a Phoenix DUI defense lawyer.
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