Caregiver Accused Of Leaving Man With Disabilities To Die In Hot Car Outside School

A North Carolina man with disabilities died on Tuesday after he was allegedly left alone in a hot car parked outside a high school for hours while his caretaker was working a second job.

Rogers Lee Inge Jr., 55, an employee of Universal Health Care, was responsible for taking care of 25-year-old Dontarious Batts at the time of the incident, according to WRAL. However, Inge took Batts to work with him at his second job as a janitor at Cleveland High School in Clayton that Tuesday.

A fundraiser launched by Batts’ family described him as autistic and nonverbal.

Inge allegedly told deputies that he left Batts in the parking lot at 8.a.m with the engine off and windows up, but went to check on him about two hours later, according to The News & Observer. He allegedly said Batts was fine at that point, but when he returned back to his car at 4:17 p.m., he discovered him dead.

The weather in Clayton at that time was around 80 degrees Fahrenheit according to reports by Weather Underground. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says temperatures inside a car can rise almost 20 degrees Fahrenheit within the first 10 minutes, even with a window cracked open.

In the 911 call obtained by WRAL, Inge reportedly told the dispatcher, “It’s my fault.”

“I didn’t think it was that hot today. I didn’t check on him. I forgot. I was working,” Inge said, according to WRAL.

Court records reviewed by HuffPost showed Inge was charged with involuntary manslaughter. An attorney assigned to him could not immediately be reached.

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