LINDALE, Texas – An infant was found dead in a sweltering vehicle outside a small-town city hall Tuesday after being left there by one of the town's reserve police officers, authorities said.
Officer Kevin Petty parked his truck Tuesday morning and drove a police car to a law-enforcement class in another town. About 3:20 p.m., he contacted Lindale police in a panic and said he did not recall taking his infant to day care, Justice of the Peace James R. Cowart told The Associated Press.
Petty's 5-month-old daughter was discovered dead inside the truck, Cowart said. Temperatures in the east Texas community climbed to 102 degrees during the day, the Tyler Morning Telegraph reported.
An autopsy was being conducted.
A Lindale police spokesman referred questions about the case to the Smith County Sheriff's Department. A message left for an investigator by The Associated Press was not immediately returned Tuesday.
Lindale, which has about 3,000 residents, is 82 miles southeast of Dallas.
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