Hearing Delayed in Deaths of 2 Boys Left in Sweltering Van

A Simi Valley mother accused of leaving her two young sons in the back seat of a hot minivan, where they died, appeared in court Friday, surrounded by a dozen friends and relatives.

Superior Court Judge Ken W. Riley postponed the arraignment of Marlene Therese Heath, 39, until Aug. 29 at the request of her attorney, Louis “Chuck” Samonsky, who said he needed more time to review police reports.

Heath was charged Thursday with two counts of felony child endangerment in the deaths of her 3-year-old son, Jake Alexander, and his 13-month-old brother, Dylan Charles, prosecutors said. Each count carries two special allegations, including one that the actions resulted in a child’s death, said Ventura County Deputy Dist. Atty. Susan Ruggles.

The charges were upgraded from the involuntary manslaughter allegations she was arrested on Sunday because the district attorney’s office believes she intentionally left the children in the van, Ruggles said.

If Heath is ordered to stand trial, prosecutors believe it would be the first case of its kind in Ventura County. If convicted on all charges, she would face a maximum of 12 years in state prison.

Health took a blood-alcohol level test the day of the deaths, but Ruggles said the information could not be released to the public.

Authorities say the brothers died of hyperthermia while Heath allegedly napped inside her Ralston Avenue home on the afternoon of Aug. 4. The young boys were strapped in child-safety seats behind the rolled-up, tinted windows of the family’s white Dodge van, which was parked in the sun, police said. It was about 90 degrees that day in Simi Valley. The temperature inside the van more likely reached about 120 degrees, experts said.

Samonsky said Friday that the situation is “heartbreaking” for the family, including the boys’ father, Philip.

“The only way I can describe it is complete devastation,” said Samonsky, who attended a memorial vigil for the children with Heath Thursday night. “I don’t think the enormity of it has even hit her yet. I don’t think she’s had a chance to really be able to grieve.”

The Simi Valley incident was only one in a string of recent deaths--six so far this year in California and 34 nationwide--involving children left unattended in sweltering vehicles.

In Gardena on Tuesday, a 54-year-old woman was taken into custody for allegedly locking her 6-year-old grandson in a hot car parked outside a department store. The boy was reportedly found by store employees “sweating profusely and pleading for help.”

Heath, who was released from Ventura County Jail on $50,000 bail Monday, was described by her neighbors as a doting mother who frequently took her boys to play at the local park and on strolls through the quiet neighborhood.