Christopher had apparently been ‘distracted by his PlayStation’, which led to him forgetting that the two-year-old was in the car.
Marana Police previously charged Christopher with second-degree murder, ruling Parker’s death as ‘accidental’.
Erika also labelled her daughter’s passing as a ‘big mistake’ as she appealed for her partner to be allowed to stay at home with his family ahead of a hearing.
“This was a big mistake and I think that it doesn’t represent him,” Erika told a judge. “I just want the girls to see their father – that I don’t have to tell them tonight that they’re going to have to endure another loss.”
The judge upheld the mother’s request, allowing the father to return home before the hearing so he could ‘start the grieving process’ with relatives.
During a hearing on Thursday (1 August), a grand jury upgraded Christopher’s charges, subsequently charging him with first-degree murder and child abuse.
Christopher’s two other children, aged nine and five, told police in their investigations that their father regularly left them alone in the car.
Details within the criminal complaint show text exchanges between Erika and Christopher on the day Parker died.
“I told you to stop leaving them in the car, how many times have I told you,” Erika is said in a text to her husband while Parker was on her way to the hospital, as per the Mail Online.
After Park passed away, the mother sent another text to her partner that read: “We’ve lost her, she was perfect.”
Christopher replied: “Babe I’m sorry! How could I do this. I killed our baby, this can’t be real.”
