Autopsy results delayed on 2 children found dead in car
April M. Washington and Alan Gathright
Published August 22, 2008 at 12:09 p.m.
Updated August 23, 2008 at 12:33 a.m.
The results of long-awaited autopsies for two Castle Pines children found dead Wednesday in their mother's parked car have been delayed until future tests are completed, officials said Friday.
The Douglas County coroner has completed the autopsies on the children but doesn't plan to make them public until extensive laboratory testing is completed, county officials said.
"The cause of death is still pending," said Douglas County sheriff's spokesman Deputy Cocha Heyden. "We're waiting for some more tests."
A report on the cause of death was expected for the children, identified as Jasmine VanHerpen-Mendieta, 5, and Nathan Mendieta, 2.
Investigators continued to hunt for clues in the deaths. Sheriff's investigators questioned Stacey Mendieta on Wednesday and Thursday, but no arrest has been made.
"We don't have anybody in custody right now," Heyden said. "We won't be able to speculate on anything until we get the cause of death."
Officials remained tight- lipped about the condition of the bodies, and it wasn't known whether they died because the inside of the car got hot or because of something else.
Wednesday afternoon, sheriff's deputies arrived at the home in the 900 block of Bramblewood Drive in the affluent Castle Pines North community on a report of two missing children.
Within a few minutes, they found the bodies in a red Honda parked in front of the home.
The car wasn't running and the windows were up, Heyden said. There was no forced entry.
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August 22, 2008
12:34 p.m.
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parnik writes:
Does anybody suspect the 'missing' husband?
"illegal alien who is most likely in Honduras or elsewhere in South America."
Or maybe hanging out in Castle Pines somewhere?
August 22, 2008
12:36 p.m.
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parnik writes:
Well, ex-husband that is, as of last week.
August 22, 2008
12:40 p.m.
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mojambo writes:
that was my first thought yesterday
Ink is not yet dry on the divorce decree - she's ready to trounce off to far away lands to meet a potential new beau who is now today described as her fiancee.
Daddy settles on one sure fire way to get back at her.
Just terrible........
August 22, 2008
12:46 p.m.
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parnik writes:
It's a horrible thing that those poor children had to lose their lives, whatever the cause was.
I hope they get their conclusion soon.
August 22, 2008
1:07 p.m.
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datbinnurick writes:
Hmm...I don't know...she is going to marry someone in Kuwait?!? Maybe the kids were just in the way - an inconvenience?!?
August 22, 2008
1:10 p.m.
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BigSky182 writes:
No matter what happened, it's either abuse or neglect resulting in death. Either way, Mom needs to be in jail.
August 22, 2008
1:12 p.m.
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parnik writes:
Let's hope not. Certainly she would have had more options. The grandparents, maybe? Why take the life of a child? Two, actually.
August 22, 2008
1:14 p.m.
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parnik writes:
You're right BigSky. How could the children have left the house without the mother noticing?
August 22, 2008
1:14 p.m.
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Jackalope writes:
This is rather tragic, but something fishy is going on here. If the ex-husband is really "most likely in Honduras or elsewhere in South America" or they at least don't know where he is, then he'd have no way of knowing the divorce is finalized, right? Also, wouldn't the mother have checked the house and front and back yards before reporting her children missing? You would think she might've found them. The entire thing is a little suspicious. Hopefully they figure out what happened.
Whatever happened it's awful, my heart goes out to those kids.
August 22, 2008
1:20 p.m.
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datbinnurick writes:
yes indeed, as a mother (or father) you would look up and down the street, ask neighbors, etc...before calling the police... also most 5 yr olds know how to unlock a car door...so there is more to it - defenitively not just death by heat...
August 22, 2008
1:20 p.m.
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lcsmithsfc writes:
Maybe the new boyfriend does not want children. Who goes to a foreign country to marry a man she met on the internet?? Has she ever met this man in person?
August 22, 2008
1:33 p.m.
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SheikYurBooty writes:
datbinnurick - my thoughts exactly. That's beyond weird. Being a foreign woman in Kuwait is signing away all your rights and freedom. And she never even met the guy?? Me smells a rat.
August 22, 2008
1:47 p.m.
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linkous2 writes:
a big rat!
August 22, 2008
1:48 p.m.
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lovedones writes:
The death of these two children is a tragedy! To most of you it is a story to judge, criticize, and point fingers at without knowing all facts; to others it is our life! Please think about the family when you decide for yourselves what happened! These two children had a loving mother, sacrifizing amazing grandparents, doting aunts and uncles, loving great grandparents, terrific great aunts and uncles, and many 1st and 2nd cousins that cared dearly for them; that are all trying to make sense of a situation that makes no sense. Please say a prayer for us all in a time can only be described as a nightmare!
August 22, 2008
1:54 p.m.
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datbinnurick writes:
lovedones: yes, no one knows all the facts... and honestly if you are a family member - my condolences, but why are you here? Don't try to make us feel guilty for expressing our impressions and thoughts.
August 22, 2008
3:01 p.m.
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COtoBOS writes:
Seriously you're awful scolding a family member for making you feel guilty! You don't know the facts and if it does come back that this was an accident you're going to have caused more pain in an already painful situation. Two young innocent children are dead! You wouldn't appreciate it if people were writing stuff like that about your family, have some compassion!
Also on another article it did say she'd met the Kuwait boyfriend once. It also said the children were found on the floor, one in the front and one in the back, they could have been hiding from their mom so she didn't see them.
August 22, 2008
3:38 p.m.
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redfive writes:
Can you say "Susan Smith"?
August 22, 2008
6:11 p.m.
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BrandiWine_84 writes:
Really, Redfive? Have a little respect. None of us know much of anything about this case, and you really put that out there? Very audacious. I certainly hope that this is not a Susan Smith case, and I certainly hope you realize what a jackass comment that was.
August 22, 2008
7:20 p.m.
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jjez writes:
I hope all parents use this as a learning experience. No matter what kind of neighborhood you live in LOCK YOUR CAR DOORS. Also lock the house doors. We child-proof our house so the kids can't get in the cabinets or electrocute themselves, but do we ever check to make sure they can't open the door? I know I didn't. And there were times when my daughter was awake when I wasn't. Usually for Saturday morning cartoons. And just because a kid has never done something before doesn't mean they won't. It's sad that tragedies like this happen before we think about this kind of thing. I'm keeping my opinion about this matter to myself, but I will say this: how well do we know anyone, really? How many of you know what's in your neighbors basement? What they really look at on their computers? What I'm saying is that we can never really KNOW anyone well enough to comment on what they may or may not be capable of.
August 23, 2008
11:41 a.m.
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jmoon writes:
My heart is breaking for the pain this family is experiencing. This is a tragic accident that could have happened to any of us. We the community should show this family our support and respect during this time. To the people saying slanderous things about this family, you should be ashamed of yourselves. You have no information for your sick and slanderous theories. You are making a horrible situation worse for this family. I hope you never experience a tragedy like this and then have members of your community turn against you without cause. Please have a heart and do the right thing by sending your love and prayers to this family. There are only victims in this situation and we should support them through the most difficult time of their lives. To Jasmine and Nathan, your family loves you and misses you so much.
August 24, 2008
3:41 a.m.
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shanesgurl writes:
I agree with what jmoon has said. Rather than rallying around this family in their time of tragedy and offering support, some of us have taken it upon ourselves to pass judgment on the mother. Let he who is without sin cast the first stone!! No one has any right to sit here and accuse the mother. I believe it's innocent until proven guilty, and last time I checked, that's the job for the police department and the courts. If these children were just an "inconvenience" to the mother, I really doubt that she'd go out of her way to obtain the correct paperwork allowing her to take them to Kuwait with her. To get that kind of paperwork, it takes time, court costs, and other associated legal fees. No one but the family knows the story, and to be honest, it's really none of anyone's business. If, in fact, it is proven that the mother had anything to do with the death of her children, then shame on her. However, that's something that she'll have to answer to in front of the Lord. I feel so very badly for this family, and it's my honest prayer that they don't read these message boards. Please, out of respect for the children, keep the nasty comments to yourselves. May God bless these children, their mother, and their grandparents.
August 24, 2008
10:34 a.m.
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GlacierDragon writes:
Thank you, shanesgurl, for finally bringing up the expense and difficulty this mother went through to be able to take the kids out of the country.
I was about to point it out myself because no one else is.
If they're waiting on lab tests, it's likely there are no signs of trauma on the children.
We'll just have to see. I do suspect it was just a horribly tragic accident. My sympathy to the family and especially the mother. Such a blow just when she thought she was moving on.
August 25, 2008
4:45 a.m.
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shanesgurl writes:
Thank you, Dragon. I call it as I see it. If the kids were going to be such an "inconvenience" as some people have chosen to say, I really don't think she would have gone to those lengths. It's sick that we, as humans, can jump to such serious accusations and claims without knowing all of the facts. Again, my heart and prayers go out to this family in the hope that they can begin to heal.
August 25, 2008
9:58 a.m.
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BigSky182 writes:
Autopsy results delayed pending toxicology reports... Police refuse to disclose the condition of the bodies...
"The Douglas County coroner has completed the autopsies on the children but doesn't plan to make them public until extensive laboratory testing is completed, county officials said."
"Officials remained tight- lipped about the condition of the bodies, and it wasn't known whether they died because the inside of the car got hot or because of something else."
And as I have already stated several times, even if this WAS an accident (and at this point I am still praying that it was just an accident... the other is too horrific for me to contemplate) it is still the result of neglect.
This was not "I went inside to make a sandwich and the child was hit by a car". It was not "We were hiking in the woods and they fell off a cliff". It was not "We were walking down the road and they were struck by lightning".
This was "I had no idea where the kids were or what they were doing for a long enough period of time for them to have asphyxiated and died while trapped in a sweltering hot vehicle parked in plain sight in front of my house".
And that's the BEST case scenario.
What is it going to take to make the general population of the planet understand that you do not ever EVER leave a 5 year old and a 2 year old UNSUPERVISED??
Yes, it is a tragedy, but it was a fully PREVENTABLE event. I am not saying that the Mother is AT FAULT or TO BLAME. I am saying that the children were her responsibility and that she neglected that responsibility. In our society, neglecting your child happens to be a crime when that neglect results in their deaths. She is responsible for what happened... no matter what happened.
August 25, 2008
2:21 p.m.
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COtoBOS writes:
Geez!! I'm glad some people are so perfect that they've never left there children unsupervised for even a minute, you must be very busy and have eyes all over your head! She could have taken a shower or made lunch, 15 or 20 minutes later realized she didn't hear or see her kids, start looking for them for another 15 or 20 minutes before calling the cops, then by the time the cops arrive they've been gone for an hour. You have NO IDEA what happened just by reading a 10 paragraph article. If they come back that it was some type of crime or negligence then you can judge the mother but before then I agree it's innocent until proven guilty. Give this poor grieving family a break!
August 25, 2008
3:29 p.m.
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BigSky182 writes:
I have not judged the Mother. When you have a 5 year old and a 2 year old playing outside... you bring them inside to watch television and you put off showering until there is someone else to watch the children or until they are safely tucked away in their beds.
Your post underlines my entire point. You are implying that it is ok to leave a 5 year old and a 2 year old unsupervised for 20 minutes or more. I have a Cousin who left his 18 month old in a walker in the kitchen "for just a minute or two" and the baby walked himself and the walker right down the stairs and into the cellar. The baby lived, but only by the grace of God.
Everyday there are hundreds of incidents where the kids get injured, killed, or stolen because the parents walked away from them "for only a minute or two".
I for one, refuse to accept that as an excuse. It was her obligation, responsibility and duty to watch over and protect her children. There is nothing anyone can say that changes that base fact.
I am sick and tired of the absolute lack of accountability that exists in this Country.
August 26, 2008
8:37 a.m.
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datbinnurick writes:
Amen to that!!!!! Too bad people refuse to accept that and society is more than willing to make excuses for them... it needs to stop...
August 26, 2008
9:58 a.m.
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BigSky182 writes:
In a very similar case, an Uncle has been charged with child abuse resulting in death for falling asleep while he was supposed to be watching his brother's baby. Baby drowned in a hot tub... the person who was supposed to be watching the baby goes to jail.
Pretty simple really. Neglecting the children for whom you are supposed to be caring isn't just dangerous... it's also illegal.
In a bizarre twist... I have just learned that my Neighbor's daughter works at the day care facility where Nathan and Jasmine were enrolled, and that my neighbor knows the family.
August 26, 2008
10:59 a.m.
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Westminster writes:
I would like to know if passports and airline tickets were purchased in advance for the children. Even purchasing three weeks out would cost $1500 per ticket.
I believe the mother is responsible for the well-being of her children. What is to be determined if it is accidental death or premediated murder.
If I fall asleep while watching my child, there is not an OOPS clause that I can fall back on. The bottom line.... I am responsible for my own children and others should be as well.
August 26, 2008
11:22 a.m.
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Westminster writes:
If you paid a daycare to watch your child and your child wandered off and died in a car, would you feel sorry for the daycare provider or would you charge them with neglect resulting in death?
Bottom line is whoever has taken the responsibility for watching a child, it is their responsibility to ensure the childs safety and if it isnt too inconvenient, keep them alive??????
August 27, 2008
11:04 a.m.
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linkous2 writes:
Thank you, Westminster! You are right on track, we all need to be accountable for ourselves and our resposibilities. Besides, not the best idea to go and meet a stranger in a foriegn country. The arrangments made to take the kids with her was a coverup.......my opinion.