Politics & Government

Update: Judge Sets $25K Bond for Woman Accused of Leaving Baby in Hot Car

Alexandria Department of Human Services will determine if and when woman is allowed to live with her four other children.

Update (5:45 p.m. Thursday): Conde Hernandez was released from jail after posting bond late this afternoon.

Original story (11:25 a.m. Thursday): Arlington County Circuit Court Judge Louise DiMatteo on Thursday set a $25,000 bond for the Alexandria woman accused of leaving her infant boy in a hot car, causing his death.

As part of the conditions of her release, 32-year-old Zoraida Magali Conde Hernandez will not be allowed to have any unsupervised contact with her other four children.

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She must undergo a mental health evaluation and risk assessment, which the Alexandria Department of Human Services will review and determine if and when she is able to live in the same residence as the surviving children.

Before setting the bond, DiMatteo said she was inclined to go along with the deal struck between the Commonwealth's Attorney's Office and Rebecca Wade, the Alexandria lawyer representing Conde Hernandez because it seemed to include "plenty of safeguards."

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The court called Conde Hernandez just before 11 a.m. She appeared in a green Arlington County jail shirt and pants. Representatives of the Alexandria Department of Human Services and the court-appointed Guardian ad Litem, a legal advocate for the surviving children, were also present.

Conde Hernandez was charged with felony child neglect on July 6, one day after she allegedly left her 8-month-old baby boy in a hot car for about six hours. She realized the child was still in his carseat, which has a canopy, when she was picking up one of her other children from daycare.

Wade has said earlier that the carseat's canopy shielded the baby from his mother's view.

July 5 saw temperatures reach more than 90 degrees. Police said Conde Hernandez drove her infant to a hospital once she realized he was in the car, and he was pronounced dead.

His temperature at Inova Alexandria Hospital was 108 degrees.

A preliminary hearing in this case is scheduled for 11 a.m. Aug. 28.

More:

2 Babies Dead: How Does a Parent Forget a Child in a Hot Car? (And How to Prevent It)


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