Harris County Jail
The 18-month-old purportedly got out of her mom's vehicle while it was sitting in their driveway with her mother unconscious inside.
A tragedy in Harris County, Texas has resulted in the death of an 18-month-old girl named Cora, and the arrest of her mother and her mother's boyfriend.
According to a social media post shared by Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, the incident went down in the late morning or early afternoon hours on Saturday in the driveway of the suspect's home in the Tromball area just outside of Houston.
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View StoryIt began with the toddler and her mother Morgan Ottinger, 31, inside their vehicle with Ottinger "allegedly passed out/or sleeping," per Gonzalez's report.
The child subsequently made her way out of that car and was standing in the driveway when the mom's boyfriend, 41-year-old Cameron Link pulled in behind the wheel of his own car, striking the child.
By the time paramedics arrived on the scene at around 12:30 p.m., it was too late to save her life. She was pronounced dead. Gonzalez said in his statements that there was a "delay in contacting 911 for assistance," but offered no further explanation.
There was no impairment found affecting the driver at the time the toddler was struck and killed.
"The child was out and about unsupervised," Harris County Sheriff Maj. Anthony McConnell told ABC affiliate KTRK.
"You ask how could this have happened?" he added. "It should’ve never happened and I can’t explain how it did happen. We have people that are just not taking care of their child like they should."
Ottinger was arrested and charged with endangering a child and is being held on a $40,000 bond. Link was arrested on open felony warrants for unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and theft and is in Harris County Jail, as is Ottinger, without bond.
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