An Arizona man who left his 2-year-old daughter inside a van in 2024 pleaded guilty Wednesday, following a plea deal with Pima County prosecutors.
According to the Pima County Attorney’s Office. Christopher Scholtes, 38, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, along with intentional child abuse likely to cause death or serious physical injury, in connection with the July 9, 2024, death of Parker Scholtes.
The Arizona Republic reports that in March 2025, Scholtes rejected a plea deal for second-degree murder. The deal would have landed him behind bars from 10 to 25 years, without the possibility of parole.
He now faces up to 30 years in prison when he is sentenced in November. The Attorney’s Office said the sentences for both charges will run consecutively without the possibility of parole.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, Scholtes left Parker in a vehicle parked outside the family’s Marana home in the driveway, with temperatures that day surging to 109 degrees.
Scholtes claimed he left the air conditioning on and that he never intended to harm his daughter.
Scholtes’ other two children, ages 9 and 5, said Scholtes usually left them alone in the vehicle to play. On the day of the incident, Scholtes got distracted while their sister was still in the car, the children said.
The timeline of events Scholtes gave investigators did not match security video obtained from a neighbor. The video confirmed Scholtes left Parker in the vehicle for three hours, not one hour, as he had claimed.
Scholtes also claimed he arrived home with the children at around 2 p.m., but security footage showed the vehicle arriving at 12:53 p.m. and not leaving again.
Before he returned home, he allegedly stole alcohol from a store. When he returned to the residence, he watched pornography, played video games and sent his wife text messages, Tucson.com reports.
At around 4 p.m. that day, Scholtes’ wife, Dr. Erika Scholtes, arrived home, discovered Parker unresponsive and performed CPR. She then called 911.
Scholtes claimed his phone was supposed to ping when the car overheats or shuts off, but that didn’t happen.
“I told you to stop leaving them in the car. How many times have I told you?” Scholtes’ wife later said in a text message.
Scholtes’ only criminal history is a DUI charge from 15 years ago.
Sentencing is scheduled for November 21 and will be handed down by a Pima County Superior Court judge.
Check back for updates.
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[Feature Photo: Christopher and Parker Scholtes/Facebook]
