Trial date set for ex-police officer in girl's hot car death
BAY ST. LOUIS, Miss. (AP) — A judge has set a trial date for a former Mississippi police officer charged with second-degree murder in the death of her daughter in a hot patrol car.
The Sun Herald reports that the judge set an April 2, 2018, trial date for 28-year-old Cassie Barker at her arraignment Monday. Barker also pleaded not guilty to the murder charge.
The former Long Beach officer is accused of leaving 3-year-old Cheyenne Hyer unattended in a patrol car for more than four hours while she was in another officer's home. The car's air conditioner was on but wasn't blowing cold air. Hyer was found unresponsive in the car and died Sept. 30, 2016.
Barker was fired days later, and initially charged with manslaughter.