CHARLESTON, S.C. — A child's death outside a South Carolina high school in August has been ruled an accident following a lengthy investigation by multiple agencies.
The Berkley County Coroner's Office released its findings on Friday concerning the death of 16-month-old Hannah Chappell outside Bishop England High School in Charleston on Aug. 25. The coroner's office said Chappell had been left in a vehicle outside the school by her mother, an employee. The coroner said the child was found "properly restrained" in a car seat in the vehicle.
Coroner Darnell Hartwell said in the statement that the child died from environmental hyperthermia and ruled the death accidental. Hartwell added that the other agencies involved in the investigation, the Charleston Police Department and the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, came to the same conclusion.
In a follow-up statement, Charleston Police added that "based on the entirety of the investigation, the evidence supports that the death was an accident and no criminal charges will be pursued."
