Nationwide — Ke’Torrius Starks Jr., a 3-year-old African American boy from Birmingham, Alabama, died after being left alone in a hot car for hours by a social worker assigned to care for him. The boy was in the worker’s custody after being taken from his father.
On July 22, Ke’Torrius was found inside a parked car on Pine Tree Drive from around 12:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., during extreme summer heat. The heat index that day reached over 100 degrees, and the car’s interior may have climbed past 150 degrees. He was pronounced dead shortly after being found.
According to People, earlier that day, Ke’Torrius had been picked up from daycare for a supervised visit with his biological father, which ended around 11:30 a.m.
Instead of returning him to daycare, the social worker reportedly stopped for personal errands, including buying food and visiting a tobacco store, before leaving him alone in the vehicle for hours.
The Alabama Department of Human Resources confirmed that the child was in DHR custody at the time and said the worker involved had been fired. The employee worked for a private agency contracted by the department. Officials have not released further information due to confidentiality laws.
The boy’s family is now grieving. Their lawyer described this as a “heartbreaking and preventable tragedy” and said the parents are mourning the loss of their child. This case has raised renewed concerns about the safety of children in foster care and supervision.
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