Former Alabama Dept of Human Resources contractor charged in ‘completely avoidable’ death of 3-year-old left for hours in hot car

The Jefferson County District Attorney’s Office announced on Friday that it had issued a felony warrant for Kela Stanford, 54, over the July death of Ketorrius "KJ" Starkes Jr. Stanford was booked into jail just after 7 am on Friday, and was released a little over an hour later after posting $30,000 bond, per AL.com.

Stanford was charged with violating Alabama Code Section 13A-11-290, "Being a person for hire responsible for a child under the age of 7 and leaving the child unattended in a motor vehicle in a manner that creates an unreasonable risk of injury or harm," per the district attorney’s office. The charge, a class B felony, carries a punishment between 2 to 20 years.

"This is a terrible tragedy that was completely avoidable and unnecessary. Our condolences go out to Ketorrius’s family," the district attorney’s office stated.

The charge is part of the Amiyah White Act, which prohibits leaving a minor or incapacitated person unattended in a car in a way that causes risk of injury or harm. It was named after Amyah White, a 2-year-old girl who died after being left in a hot van in Mobile, Alabama. The bill was passed by the legislature in 2013.

On July 22, Stanford, then working as a contractor for DHR as a transport driver for The Covenant Services, picked up Starkes from his daycare and took him for a visit with his biological father at Bessemer’s DHR location. After the visit, Stanford was supposed to return Starkes to his daycare, but reportedly got sidetracked and forgot he was in her car as she ran errands and went home.

She had no idea Starkes was still in her parked car until his foster mother called looking for him. Birmingham police found Starkes dead.

Chief Deputy Coroner Bill Yates said that Starkes had been in the car from 12:30 pm until 5:30 pm, with the windows up and doors locked. He was pronounced dead at the scene at 6:03 pm.

In a statement, DHR said, "The provider has terminated their employee. Due to confidentiality, DHR cannot comment further regarding the identity of the child or the exact circumstances."

In a phone call to Ketorrius Starkes Sr, Stanford described what led up to the events. "I got sidetracked and stopped off and got something to eat and when I came out instead of going to the left to daycare because I got called and said I didn’t have a case, I said in my head, 'Well I’m done for the day I can go home.’"

"Instead of going to the daycare, I came home," she continued, adding, "And I forgot he was back there. I am so sorry."

An unidentified woman who was also on the call with Starkes Sr said, "Baby you got us sick over here. We can’t breathe. You left a 3-year-old in the car. He couldn’t defend himself. You supposed to look in the back seat when you knew there was a child there from the get-go."

She added, "It’s nothing you can call to say to make him feel better."

Stanford replied, "I’m not trying to make him feel better. I’m not. There’s nothing I can say to make him feel better. I’m so sorry. Sorry don’t even express how deeply sorry I am."

The woman said, "You left that baby in your hot a** car and you …went inside your home and you was in there under air comfortably and this baby died in a car. He suffocated. He didn’t have no help, no nothing. You didn’t think to look in the back seat?"