Authorities in California allege that a mother left her 4-year-old daughter to drown in a submerged SUV after crashing into a canal last month.
Juliette Acosta, 26, was reportedly “taking a bath” when police arrested her in connection to the March 8 DUI crash that claimed her daughter’s life.
“According to the criminal complaint, Acosta is alleged to have been driving with a blood alcohol content nearly times the legal limit of .08% when the fatal crash occurred,” the Stanislaus County DA’s Office said.
The mother allegedly crashed her car into an irrigation canal along Canal Bank Road.
“The charging document includes circumstances in aggravation, alleging that Acosta left her partially submerged car while her daughter remained trapped inside, failing to render aid to her child, being located taking a bath while her daughter remained in peril at the crash scene, and causing the death of a vulnerable victim.”
The child’s uncle found her in the submerged SUV and pulled her out with the help of a California Highway Patrol Sheriff’s deputy.
The little girl succumbed to her injuries the following day at Modesto’s Memorial Medical Center.
