Mother faces multiple charges in death of infant left in hot car

Emily Rose Weaver

[Photo: Lancaster County Prison]

A woman from West Hempfield Township has been charged with third-degree murder, child endangerment, and involuntary manslaughter after her 3-month-old daughter died from being exposed to the environment while left in a car for several hours. The woman, Emily Rose Weaver, 32, was allegedly passed out on meth at the time. She is currently being held without bail at Lancaster County Prison.

According to court documents, Weaver's stepfather and another individual became concerned for her wellbeing when she failed to pick up her two sons from school. Knowing about her drug addiction, they went to check on her at her residence on Fairview Road. Upon finding her unresponsive on a bed, they woke her, and she realized she didn't know where her daughter was. Her stepfather then discovered the infant in an unresponsive state in a car seat outside around 4:30 p.m. The car, a Nissan Altima, was parked in direct sunlight with closed doors and windows, and the temperature outside was over 80 degrees.

Weaver admitted to using meth at least twice in the days leading up to the incident and had planned to use it again on Wednesday after taking her sons to school, but she couldn't recall if she actually did. The father of Weaver's other two children informed the police that he spoke to her on the phone around 10 a.m. that day and she was incoherent.

Investigations by Lancaster County Children and Youth from 2019 to 2023 revealed multiple instances of Weaver's drug-related activity, which ultimately led to her relinquishing parental rights of her other two children in 2021. Police stated that during this period, she failed to maintain sobriety and ignored safety plans implemented by the agency.