Reported by: Bill Price
Photographed by: 9News
Web produced by: Neil Relyea
There will be no charges against a Cincinnati Christian University professor who had her baby daughter die last month after forgetting she left her in a hot car outside her office.
Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters released a statement late Wednesday night saying that he has informed Dr. Jodie Edwards' attorney there will be no charges filed for the death of 11-month-old Jenna Edwards.
Dr. Edwards reportedly found the baby was dead when she returned to her car in the parking lot of the East Price Hill college on August 20, after leaving her in the locked SUV for as long as eight hours.
Temperatures reached over 90 degrees in Cincinnati the afternoon that Jenna Edwards died.
Late Wednesday night, the lawyer for Dr. Jodie Edwards, Robert Fischer, released a statement thanking Prosecutor Deters for his decision.
Fischer says the decision shows that Jenna Edwards' death was, "a tragic accident, and no crime was committed."
He goes on to say, "The law does not always seem to make sense, but in this case, the right decision was made."
Legal experts have said there is no explicit law in Ohio that makes causing a child's death a crime if the youngster is left inside a car.
The current standard says the action has to be "reckless," which some legal authorities say is a very high legal standard under which, they feel, few juries would convict a parent.
Local lawmakers have proposed bills to make it a crime to leave a child in a car where there is a potential danger, but initial attempts to have the Ohio legislature consider the measure failed this year.
It's expected to be reintroduced to the state legislature early next year.
Deters says he won't answer any questions about the decision until he holds a news conference on it, Thursday afternoon at 1:30 p.m. in his office.
9News will have that news conference covered for you, both on WCPO.com and again on 9News.
