A Californian mother has been charged with murder for not putting her daughter in a car seat before a fatal crash that killed the little girl.
Prosecutors allege that Kristen Lauer, 23, of Rancho Mirage failed to secure the little girl properly in a two-seater Porsche sports car, according to USA Today.
Court documents from the prosecution state that: “Lauer willfully placed Armani Green in a place of danger when she made the decision to ride in a two-seat Porsche on SR-74 without taking any precautions for the safety of the five-month old.”
Murder charges were filed Thursday against Lauer and a judge has issued a warrant for her arrest.
But as of Friday afternoon, she had not been taken into custody according to court and jail records.
It’s believed the mother was holding the infant on her lap while her partner was driving the Porsche.
The crash happened on Highway 74 south of Palm Desert. The car ploughed through a barrier and careened 200 feet down a cliff. The infant was flung from the vehicle and killed.
The father of the infant, Marcus Green, 52 has also been charged with murder and was arrested within a week of the crash.
Lauer, who was seriously injured, was airlifted to a hospital. Until this week, it had been unclear if authorities planned to prosecute her for her role in the accident.
She has also been charged with a lesser felony of willful child cruelty.
