9-day-old baby was left in car seat for 14 hours before dying, IN officials say
_fitted.png "Emmett Phillips died after Indiana officials say he was left in a car seat for 14 hours.")
An Indiana woman was sentenced to prison after officials say she left her 9-day-old baby in a car seat for 14 hours, leading to his death.
Raeleigh Phillips-Steelsmith told the court “sorry” with “little emotion,” which is what helped a judge land on her 6-year prison sentence after she pleaded guilty to reckless homicide in September, court records said. That is the maximum sentence under state law.
The Oct. 6 sentencing comes after her son, Emmett Phillips, died in Dearborn.
On March 3, 2024, police were called to a home in Lawrenceburg for a report of an unconscious infant, according to an Oct. 8 Facebook post by Dearborn County Prosecutor Lynn Deddens.
At the time, Emmett was 9 days old and had been left strapped in a car seat for 14 hours by his mother, Deddens said.
Phillips-Steelsmith said she fell asleep and later found her son slouched in the car seat, according to Deddens. When Emmett was found, he was cold, blue and limp.
Friends of Phillips-Steelsmith started performing CPR and Emmett was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead, Deddens said.
“The death of an infant is horrible and certainly tragic. However, the circumstances of the death and the recklessness exhibited by Phillips-Steelsmith constitute Reckless Homicide,” Deddens said.
Court records said Phillips-Steelsmith lied to officers about the timeline, was seen on surveillance footage standing while others tried to save Emmett and let him go to the hospital without her.
Phillips-Steelsmith has three other children in custody of others and had previously been convicted of neglect of a dependent, court records said.
An autopsy showed Emmett most likely died from positional asphyxia.
This story was originally published October 9, 2025 at 1:59 PM.
