Houston daycare owner charged with child endangerment for allegedly leaving 5 kids in hot car

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A Houston daycare operator is accused of leaving kids in a hot car at a grocery store parking lot.

Domonique Wilson faces five child endangerment charges. She appeared in court on Saturday morning. The hearing officer said Wilson's primary business is a home run daycare.

"There are five children who were endangered, found red-faced in distress, crying with the window barely cracked and the car not running," the hearing officer said.

Wilson is accused of taking her two children inside the store with her and leaving behind five of her clients' kids in the car.

"The court is recognizing the concerns about safety in regards to the children that were left in the vehicle that were found by passers by," the hearing officer said.

According to online records, Wilson is licensed by the state and doesn't have a history of compliance issues. The last report was done in April.

One of the state's witnesses identified herself to ABC13 as a store manager for a Kroger off of Telephone Road. She said on Friday, a store associate notified her of kids crying inside of a car.

The woman said when she went to check it out, she saw three infants and two children between the ages of 5-years-old to 8-years-old. While waiting for first responders to arrive, the manager said she and others were able to get the kids out. She said based on store surveillance video, the kids were in the car for a little over 40 minutes.

The Houston area is no stranger to these dangers. In July, a 9-year-old died in a hot car in a parking lot in Galena Park. The Harris County Sheriff's Office said her mother left her in the vehicle with water and the windows partially rolled down for around eight hours while she went to work.

The Texas Department of State Health Services put out a warning in July to never leave children in parked cars. The state agency said within a two week-period, there were four cases of a child dying in a parked car. This year's cases surpass the three car deaths recorded in all of 2024, according to the agency.

"Texas leads the nation in the number of child hot car deaths," Amber Rollins, director of Kids and Car Safety, said.

Rollins said a child's body temperature rises three to five times faster than an adult's.

"There's no safe amount of time for a child to be alone in a vehicle no matter what," Rollins said.

Rollins described August as one of the worst months of the year for hot car tragedies. She stressed the importance of implementing safety precautions.

"Create a habit of opening that back door and checking the backseat every single time you leave your vehicle," Rollins said.