A grandmother in Florida has been sentenced to five years in prison following the tragic death of her infant granddaughter left in a hot car under her supervision.
On November 1, 2022, Tracey Nix was responsible for her seven-month-old granddaughter, Uriel Schock, and had taken her out to lunch with friends. Surveillance footage captures the moment Nix strapped Uriel into her car seat around 1:40 PM before driving home to Wauchula, which was only a ten-minute trip.
Once home, Nix parked, rolled up the windows, and went inside to converse with her dog and practice the piano.
Sadly, Uriel succumbed to the extreme heat inside the vehicle, with reports from WFTS indicating the temperature reached 90 degrees on that November day.
Upon discovering Uriel in the overheated car, Nix’s husband attempted CPR, but the infant sadly died of hyperthermia, according to investigators.
During a police interview, Nix claimed she had “just forgotten” about Uriel.
The affidavit stated: “The defendant said she parked the car in the yard and forgot the victim was in the back seat and proceeded to inside the house and talk to her dog and practice piano for a ‘long time’ because she had a piano lesson coming up on Thursday.”
She further explained, “The defendant said she didn’t have ‘anything specific’ on her mind, and it’s not like ‘I was rushing in the house to do anything … I just forgot’.”
This heartbreaking event followed another tragedy less than a year prior, when Nix’s other grandchild, 16-month-old Ezra Schock, drowned while under her care after she fell asleep.
The toddler managed to wander under a fence near his grandparents’ house and ended up in a pond.
Nix had previously been found guilty of leaving a child unattended in a vehicle resulting in great bodily harm. However, she was acquitted of aggravated manslaughter, which could have led to a 30-year prison sentence.
Despite not testifying in court, Nix received a five-year sentence, admitting she forgot her granddaughter was in the car.
She expressed, “I literally forgot for a long period of time. I’m broken about what happened. I don’t want to leave anyone with the thought that I’m making excuses, because I’m not.”
Kaila Nix-Schock addressed her mother during the sentencing, having lost two of her children due to Nix’s negligence.
“I still love you. I hate this,” Nix-Schock said through tears, as reported by Fox 13 Tampa. “I hate that I have to choose, but you know I had to. But it doesn’t change my heart.”
In delivering the sentence, Judge Brandon Rafool commented: “Uriel is not an isolated incident. I do not believe she is showing remorse; I believe she is showing sorrow.”
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