- Deja and Justin Rollins are accused of murdering their 2-year-old child
- They have already faced charges of child abuse and neglect
An Arkansas couple has been charged with murder after leaving four children in a hot car, killing their 2-year-old.
Deja, 27, and Justin Rollins, 29, were already charged with child abuse and neglect for allegedly leaving their children unattended in a car outside Arkansas Children’s Hospital on Sunday. KARK reports.
Officers said they responded to the scene after receiving reports that another child, an unidentified three-year-old, had been brought in for emergency treatment.
During the Jacksonville police investigation, they discovered the couple had four other children — ages 2, 4, 7 and 10 — but the couple refused to tell police where the children were.
Justin, left, and Deja Rollins, right, are accused of murdering their 2-year-old son, who was left in a hot car with his siblings on Sunday.
Police later found the children in a car in the hospital parking lot and alerted hospital security, who were able to open the car. according to Arkansas Online.
All these children suffered from heat exhaustion and were treated in hospital, according to KATV.
But the next day, 2-year-old Jay’Dien Rollins was pronounced dead.
During the subsequent investigation, police also found a malnourished dog in their Jacksonville home and turned the dog over to Jacksonville Animal Services.
Their children, ages 2, 4, 7 and 10, were found in a car in the parking lot of Arkansas Children’s Hospital
The parents now each face charges of five counts of first-degree domestic violence, five counts of neglect of a vulnerable person, five counts of endangering the welfare of a minor, one count of animal cruelty and one count of obstructing governmental activities.
They pleaded not guilty to the murder charge at a hearing on Tuesday, just one day after pleading not guilty to the earlier charges.
Both Deja and Justin are now being held without bail at the Pulaski County Regional Detention Facility.