Mother charged after sons, aged 2 and 4, died from overheating when she left them in SUV to meet man in nearby car - six weeks after her husband was killed in a car crash
- Heather Jensen, 24, 'left boys in the back seat for 90 minutes' with the heating on
- William, two, dead at the scene in Grand Junction, Colorado while Tyler, four, flown to Denver hospital but died a week later
- Coroner confirmed brothers' cause of death was hyperthermia
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A mother has been arrested after her two sons died when she left them alone in an SUV with the engine running, authorities said.
Heather Jensen, 24, was taken into custody on Wednesday after Tyler, 4, and two-year-old William died accidentally from hyperthermia last year.
She has been charged with two counts of child abuse resulting in death, two counts of criminally negligent homicide and one count of false reporting to authorities.
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Criminal charges: Heather Jensen, 24, was arrested after her two young sons died when she left them in her SUV with the engine running in Colorado last year
Tragedy: Two-year-old William (left) died on November 27 in Colorado while his four-year-old brother Tyler (right) died a week later in hospital. The two had been left by their mother in an SUV with the engine running for 90 minutes
Jensen was arrested in Fort Myers, Florida where she had been staying with family. Bond has been set at $150,000.
Jensen has been charged after she left her sons on November 27 in the parked vehicle for 90 minutes while she met up with a male friend in a car sitting next to her own.
Mrs Jensen called 911 that night to say two-year-old William was not breathing and had no pulse from the car park close to Powderhorn Mountain ski resort in Grand Junction, Colorado.
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ShareShe also told dispatchers at around 7pm that four-year-old Tyler was barely breathing.
William died at the scene while Tyler was airlifted to Aurora's children's hospital but passed away a week later.
Both children died from hyperthermia, according to the autopsy by Mesa County coroner. Hyperthermia is a condition which causes extreme overheating in the body.
Widowed: Heather Jensen, 24, lost her 26-year-old husband Eric in a car accident last year
Devastating loss: The young mother lost both her sons in the tragic accident last year
Deadly: Heather Jensen dialed 911 on November 27 when she realized that her youngest son was not breathing in the back seat
Mrs Jensen told investigators that she had gone to meet a male friend on November 27 when the tragedy took place.
She initially told deputies that she left her sons in the car for 10 minutes to talk to a friend but later admitted that it had been much longer.
Heather Jensen was widowed after her 26-year-old husband Eric was killed when his car was hit head-on by an SUV on October 10. The other driver suffered minor injuries.
According to the Daily Sentinel, she let the boys play in the snow on November 27 before putting them back in her Toyota 4Runner and turning the engine on.
She then sat in the man's truck for around an hour and a half, police investigators said.
The 24-year-old, who has a history of taking anti-depressants, is on probation for a domestic violence assault against her late husband earlier this year.
In love: Mr and Mrs Jensen with their youngest son William. The young mother lost both her sons and husband in a matter of weeks
Adorable: Tyler died at a Denver hospital while William (right) was pronounced dead at the scene
Deaths: Mr Jensen was killed in October when his car was hit head-on by an SUV. His sons William and Tyler also died in a vehicle-related death
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