Alabama mom charged with murder after leaving baby in car overnight

LIMESTONE COUNTY, Ala. (WHNT) -- A 13-month old baby is dead after a Toney woman left her child locked inside a car overnight.

The Limestone County Sheriff's Office said Elizabeth Anne Case, 36, is charged with murder after she left her 13-month-old baby inside a car Friday overnight and into the afternoon hours on Saturday.

Investigators said that Case left her home on East Limestone Road between 9 p.m. and 10 p.m. with her baby buckled into a front-facing car seat and without strapping the seat to the vehicle. Authorities said Case traveled both Limestone and Madison Counties dumpster diving while the baby was in her car. She returned home around 5:40 a.m. on Saturday and left the baby in the vehicle when she went inside the home and went to bed, according to law enforcement.

Investigators said Case woke up around 1:30 p.m. when the baby's grandmother came to the home to see him. Law enforcement said the grandmother woke Case up by banging on the door when she couldn't find her grandchild. They searched for the baby and found him in the car, according to authorities.

Investigators said instead of seeking immediate medical help, Case took the baby in the home and placed him in the shower. Authorities said the grandmother called 911, loaded the baby in the car with Case and met Athens Police at the intersection of Highway 251 and Highway 31.

Authorities said Case is a known drug user and was out of jail on bond for a first-degree robbery.