Lower Hudson Valley Dad Arrested After Babies Die in Hot Car
A Lower Hudson Valley father was charged in the death of his 1-year-old twins who were allegedly left for hours in a hot car.
Juan Rodriguez, 39, of Rockland County was charged with two counts each of manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide.
According to prosecutors, the Iraq War veteran told police he thought he dropped off his 1-year-old twins at daycare before heading to work at a hospital in the Bronx Friday morning. Rodriguez did drop off an older child at another daycare Friday morning but then discovered his twins in the backseat of his car after working his shift.
CBS reports Rodriguez found Luna and Phoenix Rodriguez unconscious and foaming from the mouth in the back of the car Friday around 4 p.m. Rodriguez immediately called 911 but the babies were pronounced dead at the scene.
“My client is inconsolable. He is beside himself in grief, and he’s been that way for a period of time, and I’m concerned about his mental health,” his attorney Joey Jackson said.
Rodriguez is married and has three other children, according to CBS. The mother of the 1-year-old twins defended her husband.
"Though I am hurting more than I ever imagined possible, I still love my husband," Marissa Rodriguez said in a statement according to NBC. "He is a good person and great father and I know he would've never done anything to hurt our children intentionally."