No murder charge for mother who forgot baby in hot car

A sleep-deprived mother has avoided murder charges after her 22-month-old son died in a hot car because she was suffering from a memory lapse known as 'forgotten baby syndrome'.

Noah Zunde died aged 22 months after succumbing to heatstroke when he was left in a car for seven hours.

A coroner's court in Australia heard that his mother Romy Zunde had mistakenly believed she had dropped her son at childcare.

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A psychologist told the court that Zunde was stressed, sleep-deprived and had experienced "forgotten baby syndrome". As a result, she should not face criminal charges.

So what is forgotten baby syndrome – and why does it happen?

What is the condition?

The phrase was coined in the US to describe a memory lapse where someone forgets their child.

Psychology professor Matthew Mundy told the Victoria coroner's court this week that if you are capable of forgetting to post a letter, you are capable of forgetting to take your baby out of the car.

He said your brain does not discriminate "between posting a letter, a baby, or remembering to pick up your mobile phone".

He explained that memory is limited and can only remember a number of things at one time.

He added: "Consciously we know that child is way more important than a letter or your mobile phone, but your brain cells … are not making that discrimination for you."

Has this happened before?

There have been five such deaths in the Australian province of Victoria in the past five years, according to ABC – and more than 600 fatal cases in the US since 1990.

A 2009 article in the Washington Post reported that incidences of forgotten children were rising, perhaps because car safety experts had advised moving children's cat seats from the front to the back of cars, resulting in "lessened visibility".

In the US, sensors have been developed which will alert a parent to movement in the back of a parked car, via their mobile phone.

What about the UK?

There hasn't been a fatal case reported here, according to the Daily Mail.

In 2012, the then Prime Minister David Cameron left his daughter Nancy behind after a pub lunch. She was eight years old at the time and was only left alone for ten minutes, the BBC reported, before Cameron and his wife Samantha returned for her with their other two children.