Judge Denies Probation In Child Heat Death Case
By: Ken Curtis
Updated: July 24, 2012
Stephanie Coogle, 24, was ordered to serve a four year prison term by Circuit Judge Kevin Moulton during a hearing held Tuesday . She was credited with 317 days spent behind bars awaiting trial. Coogle could be paroled within a few months.
Coogle and her common-law husband, Christopher Aldridge, were charged after their son, Shawn, became trapped inside the family's SUV. Aldridge was found not guilty earlier this year of a similar charge.
Police contend the boy could have been inside the vehicle for up to nine hours with temperatures as outside temperatures soared well into the 90's. The youngster---according to investigators--- climbed inside after his parents were involved domestic argument.
Coogle, according to reports, went to a neighbor's house while Aldridge remained home. Police say the child could not get out because the interior handles of the SUV were broken. An autopsy showed Shawn died from heat exhaustion.
Coogle was released from jail in May after her bond was reduced from $200,000 to $10,000. That followed her guilty plea.
She was returned to the Houston County Jail after her probation was denied and is expected to be transferred to a state penitentiary.
